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GIFT  OF 
A.    ?•    Morrison 


WONDERS    OF    SCIENCE 


THE 


3  J      J       J      .1  1  '      ' 

5    5     5       3        3       J 


WONDERS  OF  WATER 


From  the  French  of  Gaston  Tissandier 


EDITED,  WITH  NUMEROUS  ADDITIONS 


SCHELE    DE    VERE,    D.D.,    LL.D. 


ILLUSTRATED 


NEW  YORK 

CHARLES    SCRIBNER'S    SONS 

1894 


06  GS/ 
/87I 


•    •  •  •  • 


Entered  according  to  act  of  Cfugress  in  the  year  1871,  by 

chakles  sceibnee  and  company, 

In  the  office  ot  the  Librarian  of  Congress  at  Washington. 

GIFT  OF 


CONTENTS. 


L— THE    OCEAN. 


I  —A  Glance   at  the  Ocean 3 

Extent 4 

Depth 6 

Color 11 

Temperature 16 

n. — The  Motion  of  the  Sea — Superficial  Agitation...  18 

The  Tides 22 

The  Currents ^6 

ni.— Destruction  and  Creation — The  Struggle  of  Water 

with  Land 42 

Beproductive  Effects 48 


n.— THE    SYSTEM    OF    CIRCULATION. 

L— Water  on  its  Travels 69 

n.  —The  Water  in  the  Atmosphere— The  Vapor  of  Water  68 

Fogs 71 

Clouds — Condensation  of  Vapor — Rain,  Snow  and 

Dew 72 

ni. — The  Arterial  System  of  Continents — Rivers 78 

Length  and  Depth  of  Rivers 83 

Shores  and  floating  Islands 86 


M97091 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  PAOK 

The  coloring  of  Biver  Water 88 

Subterranean  Circulation 90 


III.— THE    ACTION    OF    WATER    ON    CONTINENTS. 

I. — Mechanical  and  Physical  Action 101 

The  Currents — Transportation 102 

Torrents   and  Rapids 106 

Floating  Ice 107 

Waterfalls  and   Cascades 108 

n.— Deltas 115 

in. — Inundations 122 

rV.— Chemical   Action — Petrifying    Springs — Caverns — 

Stalactites 131 

Pisolites  —  Oolites 137 

Standing  Water : 139 

v. — Yesterday  and  To-morrow 141 


IV. -THE    PHYSICAL    AND    CHEMICAL    PROPERTIES 
OF    WATER. 

L  —What'  is   Water  ?— The  Laboratory 151 

Analysis  and   Synthesis 154 

The  Composition  of  Water 164 

II.— The  Influence  of  Heat— Ebullition 168 

III. — Influence  of  Cold — An  Exception  to  the  Laws  of 

Nature 174 

rV. — Ice — The  Architecture    of  Atoms 179 

Ice  and  Glaciers 183 

v.— The    Part    which    Water    plays    in    Chemistry— 

1.  Dissolution 192 

2.  The  Color  and  Transparency  of  Water 195 

3.  Plants  and  Animals 197 


CONTENTS.  711 

v.— rHE    USES    OF    WATER. 

OUAPX£S  PAGE 

I.— Water  and  Agriculture  203 

Irrigation  and  Drainage 208 

"Colmatage,"  or  the  Drainage  of  Marshes 215 

II.— Salt  Waters— Sea  Salt 217 

III.  — Ice  and  its  Artificial  Manufacture 224 

Goubaud's  Apparatus — Family  Refrigerators  ....  227 

Carry's  Apparatus 230 

IV. — Mineral  Waters — Popular  Errors 234 

The  Uncertainties  of  Science 237 

Classification 240 

American  Mineral  Springs 247 

Ti-eatment 264 

v.— Baths 266 

Fresh  and  Sea  Water  Baths 274 

The  Water  Cure 277 

Artificial  Mineral  Waters 281 

VI.— PuDlic  Hygiene— Drinking  Water 283 

Domestic  and  Industrial  Uses 291 

VII.— The  Water  of  Paris—A  Glance  at  the  Past 294 

Sewers 312 

VIII. — Artesian  Wells— Subterranean  Reservoirs 318 

The  Well  of  Grenelle 325 

Utilization  of  the  General  Heat  of  the  Globe  by 
means  of  Artesian  Wells 329 

IX.— The  Oasis  in  the  Desert 333 

Appendix. — Analyses  of  various  Mineral  Waters  in   the 
United  States 346 


LIST    OF     ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAOB 

Land  and  Water  Hemispheres 4 

Depth  of  the  Atlantic 6 

Brooke's  Sounding  Rod  and  Ball 8 

Profile  of  the  Depths  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean 9 

The  Phosphorescent  Sea 15 

Floating  Mountain  of  Ice 16 

Storm  Scene 20 

Equinoctial  Tidal  Wave 23 

Rocks  worn  by  Water 42 

Action  of  Waves  on  Rocks 45 

Mass  of  Debris  opposing  Waves 48 

Air  Piston 73 

Source  of  the  Apurimac 80 

Curve  described  by  a  Stream  of  Water 83 

Source  of  the  Camisia 84 

Table  of  Comparative  Length  of  Rivers 86 

Snags  in  the  Missouri 88 

Fan  Geyser 94 

The  Giantess  96 

Ravine  of  Occocamba 102 

Rocks  torn  away  by  a  Torrent 104 

Falls  of  Niagara 108 

Upper  Falls  of  the  Yellowstone 110 

Falls  of  Zambesi 112 

Falls  of  the  Rhine 113 

Falls  of  Felou 118 

The  Orinoco 123 

Pisolites  and  Oolites .   137 

Decomposition  of  Water  by  a  Voltaic  Battery 155 


X  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGB 

Decomposition  of  Water  by  Zinc  and  Sulphuric  Acid 15G 

Preparation  of  Oxygen 157 

Combustion  of  Steel  in  Oxygen 157 

Decomposition  of  Water  by  Hot  Iron 158 

Decomposition  of  Water  by  Chlorine 158 

Formation  of  Water  by  burning  Hydrogen 160 

Mercurial  Eudiometer 164 

Apparatus  for  ascertaining  the  Weight  of  the  Elements  of  Water  165 

Ebullition  of  Water  in  a  Vacuum .  170 

Distilling  Apparatus 172 

Maximum  Density  of  Water 175 

Snow  Crystals 181 

Crystals  of  Saltpetre 193 

Action  of  Water  on  Quicklime 194 

Oven  for  drying  Salts 196 

Irrigation  by  Infiltration 210 

Tubular  Drain 214 

Gutter  Drain 214 

Cobble  Drain 214 

Drain  WeU 214 

Cream  Freezer 225 

Goubaud's  Apparatus 228 

Household  Freezer    230 

Carrd's  Apparatus 231 

Carry's  Large  Apparatus 232 

Plombiferes 242 

Grande  Grille 244 

Plan  of  the  Baths  at  Pompeii 267 

Sea-baths,  Biarritz 274 

Ozouf  Apparatus 282 

View  of  the  Schuylkill  near  Philadelphia 302 

Fairmount  Water-works,  Philadelphia 304 

Water  Carriers 310 

Level  of  Lakes 322 

Artesian  Well 324 


1. 


THE    OCEAN 


"  The  element  which  we  term  flnid,  mobile  and  capricious,  does  not  really 
change,  but  is  regularity  itself." — Michelet. 

"  It  is  science  which  has  discovered  within  less  than  a  century  the  true  poet- 
ry of  the  sea.  The  mariner  sounding  the  depths  of  the  abyss,  and  the  meteoro- 
legist  studying  his  atmospheric  chart  and  investigating  the  causes  of  tempests, 
have  greatly  contributed  to  dissipate  vain  and  superstitious  terrors,  and  in 
proportion  as  we  cease  to  fear  this  mighty  mass  of  moving  water,  we  admire 
its  sublimity." — A.  Esquiros. 

"  Whether  as  solid,  liquid  or  gas,  water  is  one  of  the  most  admirable  sub- 
stances in  nature." — Tyndaix. 


9         ■»      4  J       J 


^=     -8,       ^^t 


CHAPTER  L 

A  GLANCE  AT  THE  OCEAN. 

••  A  SAnx>R  placed  in  the  midst  of  the  ocean  experiences  sentiments  anaIo> 
gous  to  those  of  the  astronomer,  when  he  views  the  stars  and  interrogates 
with  his  eyes  the  blue  vault  of  heaven."  Maxtby. 

There  is  no  more  imposing  spectacle  than  that 
afforded  by  the  sea  when  our  view  is  Hmited  by  no 
shore.  "  Whilst  contemplating  the  Ocean,"  says 
Humboldt,  "  he  who  delights  in  creating  a  world  of 
his  own,  where  the  spontaneous  activity  of  his 
mind  can  exercise  itself  unshackled,  can  feel  himself 
penetrated  with  the  sense  of  infinitude."  In  watch- 
ing the  ceaseless  march  of  the  waves,  which  creep 
gently  upon  the  shore,  the  flying  foam  which  alter- 
nately appears  and  disappears,  and  the  restless  un- 
dulation of  the  billows  chasing  one  another  with  a 
plaintive  measure,  one  can  well  understand  how  the 
inventive  imagination  of  man  should  have  personi- 
fied this  mass  of  inert  matter,  and  one  feels  no  sur- 
prise at  Schleider's  words,  "  Its  vast  surface  rises 
and  falls  as  if  it  had  been  gifted  with  the  power  of  a 
gentle  respiration."  The  observer  looks  everywhere 
for  some  distant  horizon,  but  the  liquid  circle  with 
which  he    is   surrounded  melts  so  insensibly  into 


ft  WATER. 

a  vaporous  outline,  tliat  earth  and  sky  blend  into 
oacli  other  and  become  one.  He  tries  to  measure 
the  d^pth  and  im  a- ensity  of  the  abyss,  but  is  ar- 
rested, in  hik  calcJ illations  by  an  overwhelming  sense 
of  ihi^.  mysfcerifis  which  he  feels  instinctively  lie  con- 
o^aled/ixador  tyie^  veil  vith  which  they  are  covered 
by  nature.  He  remembers  the  solemn  words  :  "  His 
way  is  in  the  seas  :  His  path  is  in  tlie  great  waters." 


EXTENT. 
••  An  immense  mass  of  water  covers  the  larger  portion  of  tbe  globe." 

BUFFOH. 

"  On  the  globe,"  says  Michelet,  "  water  prevails, 
land  is  the  exception,"  notwithstanding  which,  it  is 
by  no  means  easy  to  estimate  the  superficial  extent 
of  the  sea.  The  slow  changes  of  the  firm  land, 
which  rises  or  sinks,  the  waves,  which  are  inces- 
santly at  work  diminishing  the  rocky  shores,  the 
banks  of  madrepores  and  polypes,  which  daily  rise 
higher  and  higher  from  the  bosom  of  the  sea — all 
these  causes  constantly  modify  the  slope  of  conti- 
nents and  cause  perpetual  alterations  in  the  form  of 
our  globe.  It  has  been,  however,  clearly  ascertained 
that  the  sea  covers  two  thirds  of  the  surface  of  the 
globe,  hence  more  than  62,000,000  square  miles  are 
under  water.  The  sea  is,  moreover,  very  unequally 
distributed,  the  Southern  hemisphere  being  more 
abundantly  provided  with  water  than  the  Northern, 
so  that  the  terrestrial  globe  may  be  roughly  divided 
into  two  parts,  one  being  looked  upon  as  the  world 
of  the  sea  and  the  other  of  the  dry  land. 


LAND    AND   WATER  HRMTSPTIEltKi^.  '    '  ^    ^'  '^  '^  ^  ^^ 


'■.  ('  ,  \'  I  t'l  II 


THE  OCEAN.  6 

In  our  day,  at  least,  the  liquid  element  covers 
nearly  three  fourths  of  the  surface,  the  solid  soil 
only  a  little  more  than  a  fourth.  The  largest  mass 
of  continental  land  lies  on  the  northeastern  part  of 
the  globe,  while  the  ocean  prevails  on  the  south- 
western portion.  The  former  is,  of  course,  the 
principal  stage  of  the  history  of  our  race  ;  here  alone 
the  surface  of  the  earth  shines  forth  in  all  its  beauty 
and  usefulness.  The  miniature  part  of  the  globe, 
where  only  the  smallest  of  continents  and  an  innum- 
erable host  of  islands  lie  scattered  hke  the  stars  in 
heaven,  it  consists  almost  exclusively  in  the  uniform 
monotonous  element  of  water ;  incapable  of  sup- 
porting large  groups  of  races,  or  of  developing  them 
according  to  great  and  distinct  types,  its  inhabi- 
tants are  mostly  in  a  state  of  primitive  barbarism, 
in  which  they  have  remained  perhaps  for  thousands 
of  years.  It  is  not  quite  a  century  since  they  also 
have  been  admitted  into  the  great  brotherhood  of 
nations  by  the  enormous  development  of  navigation 
and  colonization.  In  the  very  centre  of  this  aquatic 
half  of  our  globe  lies  New  Zealand,  and  not  far  from 
it  New  Holland,  islands  which,  on  account  of  their 
peculiar  and  exceptional  position,  cannot  fail  to  have 
a  grand  future. 

Even  where  the  waters  still  cover  the  earth,  aa 
during  the  Deluge,  hfe  is  present,  and  beyond 
measure  abundant.  For  this  vast  surface  of  waters 
is  not  quiet  and  inanimate  ;  far  from  it ;  for  in  its 
dark  bosom  new  myriads  of  beings  are  born  inces- 
santly, day  after  day.  There  live  and  breathe  and 
move  in  its  mysterious  depths  vast  hosts  of  animals 


6  WATER. 

and  plants,  which  surpass  those  of  the  firm  land,  if 
not  in  beauty  of  form  and  perfection  of  shapes,  cer- 
tainly in  numbers  and  in  variety.  Charles  Darwin 
has  stated  that  our  forests  did  not  shelter  as 
many  animals  as  the  lower  forest  regions  of  the 
ocean,  where  seaweeds  and  fuci  unfold  their  soft 
foliage ;  and  even  at  the  very  bottom  of  the  great  deep, 
the  soundings  made  last  year  (1870)  have  proved 
that  a  fullness  of  Hfe  is  pervading  the  faint  twilight. 
Hence  it  was  not  the  immeasurable  mass  of  water 
only,  but  its  teeming,  boundless  fertility  also,  which 
made  the  Greek  philosophers  look  upon  the  sea  as 
"  the  house  and  mother  of  hfe,"  which  caused 
Indians,  sages  and  Egyptian  priests  to  kneel  down 
on  the  banks  of  sacred  streams  and  adore  them  as 
visible  images  of  the  Deity. 


DEPTH. 

"  We  perceive  as  many  inequalities  on  the  bottom  of  the  sea  as  on  the  sur- 
face of  the  earth."  Buffon. 

During  many  centuries  the  most  erroneous  ideas 
prevailed  on  the  subject  of  the  depth  of  the  sea,  and 
the  early  nations  beheld  in  this  vast  liquid  waste  an 
impassable  barrier,  a  terrible  gulf  without  bottom 
and  without  shore.  The  fathom  Une  seems  to  have 
been  thrown  at  random  into  unknown  space,  and 
the  ocean  appeared  to  repel  the  efforts  of  those  nav- 
igators who  sought  to  penetrate  its  secrets.  The 
operation  of  sounding  the  sea  is  one  attended  with 
great    difficulties.     The    fathom    Hne,    continually 


THE  OCEAN.  7 

drawn  aside  by  the  currents  of  the  sea,  is  apt  to 
take  an  oblique  direction  instead  of  sinking  down  in 
a  vertical  line.  It  continues  to  run  out  even  after  it 
has  reached  the  bottom. 

Notwithstanding  this,  ingenious  contrivances  have 
been  invented  capable  of  remedying  these  incon- 
veniences, and  reliable  measurements  have  been  ar- 
rived at  by  Maury  and  other  navigators.  Brooke's 
line  has  given  the  most  satisfactory  results  ;  after 
having  touched  the  bottom  of  the  sea,  it  brings 
back  specimens  of  great  value  to  science.^  A  ball 
of  between  six  and  seven  pounds  weight  is  pierced, 
and  through  the  whole  is  passed  a  loose  iron  rod, 
terminated  at  its  lower  end  by  a  cylindrical  cavity 
As  soon  as  the  rod  reaches  the  bottom  the  ball  is 
set  free  by  the  action  of  a  lever,  and  remains 
beneath  the  water,  while  the  rod  is  easily  brought 
up  again  to  the  surface.  The  figure  shows  on  the 
left  the  line  before  it  has  reached  the  bottom,  and 
on  the  right  the  ball  falling  in  consequence  of  the 
shock  into  the  water.  The  mean  deptli  of  the 
ocean,  according  to  Humboldt,  is  nearly  10,000 
feet ;  according  to  Young,  that  of  the  Atlantic  Ocean 


*  It  is  in  a  plateau  of  the  Atlantic  that  Brooke's  invention 
brought  the  first  specimens  from  the  bottom  of  the  sea.  Though 
in  appearance  earthy,  the  matter  extracted  from  the  depth  ol 
the  sea  was  composed  of  microscopic  shells,  in  perfect  preserva- 
tion, belonging  to  the  family  of  the  foraminifera.  In  the  Indian 
Ocean,  on  the  contrary,  spiculae  of  sponge,  incrusted  with  flint, 
liave  been  found  at  the  depth  of  12,800  feet.  It  is  evident, 
therefore,  that  in  the  depth  of  the  sea  are  to  be  found  soils  at 
various  kinds,  calcareous  and  siliceous. 


WATER. 


must  be  nearly  3,300  feet,  and  that  of  the  Pacific, 
13,000  feet.  Dupetit  Thenars  has  taken  two  cele- 
brated soundings,  one  in  the  great  southern  ocean, 
where  he  found  bottom  at  13,000  feet — ^the  other  in 


Brooke's  Sounding  Bod  and  BalL 

the  great  equinoctial  ocean,  of  which  the  depth  is 
11,500  feet.  Not  far  from  the  shores  of  the  United 
States,  Lieutenant  Walsh,  U.S.N.,  paid  out  a  ver- 


THE   OCEAN. 


.9 


tical  sounding  line 
nearly  33,000  feet, 
which  fact  contra- 
dicts the  calculations 
of  M.  Laplace,  who, 
founding  his  opinion 
on  the  influence  ex- 
ercised upon  our  pla- 
net by  the  sun  and 
moon,  declared  it  to 
be  impossible  for  the 
depth  of  the  sea  to 
exceed  25,000  feet. 
However  this  may 
be,  it  has  been  shown 
by  demonstrative  ev- 
idence that  the  ocean 
does  reach  immense 
depths,  which,  how- 
ever, does  not  appear 
to  surpass  in  any 
case  the  height  of 
some  of  the  loftier 
mountains  of  India 
and  America.  Some- 
times, again,  it  covers 
the  earthy  crust  only 
with  a  thin  sheet  of 
water.  At  the  mouth 
of  the  Po  the  depth 
of  the  sea  does  not 
much     exceed      150 


10  WATER. 

feet ;  while  the  bottom  of  the  Baltic  never  sinks  be- 
yond 650  feet,  and  certain  parts  of  the  ocean  would 
not  entirely  cover  some  of  our  public  buildings. 
The  dome  of  the  Pantheon  at  Paris  would  rise  above 
the  level  of  the  Straits  of  Dover,  and  this  shallow- 
ness of  the  straits  which  separate  France  from 
Great  Britain  encourages  the  hope  that  the  two 
countries  may  be  united  ere  long  by  a  submarine 
tunnel.  It  will  not  be  long  before  science  gives  us 
yet  more  intimate  and  accurate  information  on  the 
subject  of  the  depth  of  the  ocean,  and  Maury,  when 
still  Director  of  the  Observatory  at  Wash'ngton 
already  constructed  an  admirable  Orographic  chart 
of  the  basin  of  the  Atlantic.  On  this  chart,  which 
we  here  reproduce,  the  dark  shades  represent  the 
depths,  averaging  23,000  feet,  and  the  lighter  ones 
those  of  from  5,900  to  6,500  feet. 

These  same  variations  of  depth,  seen  in  outline, 
show  more  fully  their  irregularities,  and  the  vertical 
aspect  of  the  immense  trench  which  separates  the 
Old  World  from  the  New  World,  exhibits  the  hilly 
uneven  character  of  the  ground  which  lies  beneatli 
the  waste  of  waters. 

If  the  sea  were  to  retreat  from  this  gigantic  furrow, 
leaving  bare  the  terrestrial  epidermis,  what  vestiges  of 
shipwrecks  would  be  disclosed  amid  the  ripples 
of  the  shallow  water  ?  "  Then,"  says  Maury,  in  his 
Physical  Geography  of  the  Sea,  "  would  doubtless 
come  to  Ught  that  terrible  combination  of  human 
bones,  relics  of  all  sorts,  heavy  anchors,  precious 
pearls,  out  of  which  fantastic  imagination  has  woven 
so  many  troubled  dreams."     Thus,  the  bottom  of 


fHE   OCEAN.  11 

the  sea  is  formed  of  mountains  and  valleys,  eleva- 
tions and  table-lands,  ravines,  and  slopes,  and  hills, 
and  plains.  Our  continents  are,  in  point  of  fact, 
nothing  more  than  non-submerged  summits  of  these 
mountains,  and  the  dry  portions  of  the  globe  appear 
more  or  less  according  as  the  sea  reveals  them  ; 
while  the  waters,  in  obedience  to  the  laws  of  gravity, 
collect  by  reason  of  their  mobility  in  the  vast  basins 
below,  and  spread  tliemselves  over  the  lower  parts 
of  the  terrestrial  covering.  If  the  surface  of  the 
globe,  instead  of  being  ruffled  and  uneven,  were  as 
smooth  and  uniform  as  a  ball  of  ivory,  the  sea 
would  cover  it  entirely  with  a  liquid  of  about  650 
feet  in  thickness. 

Assuming  a  mean  average  of  13,000  feet  for  the 
depth  of  the  sea,  it  has  been  calculated  that  the 
ocean  constitutes  a  volume  150,095,456,500  cubic 
feet  of  water.  In  order  to  contain  this  liquid  mass 
it  would  require  a  spherical  bottle  of  from  50  to  60 
leagues  in  diameter !  The  sheet  of  water  which 
covers  almost  entirely  the  surface  of  the  globe  is 
considerable,  relatively  to  the  dry  portions,  which 
are  termed  terra  jirma,  but  it  is  very  little,  com- 
pared with  the  whole  mass  of  our  planet.  If  we 
divide  the  entire  globe  into  1,786  parts  of  equal 
weight,  one  of  those  portions  will  give  the  total 
weight  of  the  waters  of  the  sea ! 


COLOE. 
"  CsBruleum  Mare." — Viboil. 

The  water  of  the  sea,  if  enclosed  in  a  bottle,  ap- 
pears colorless,  but  seen  from  the  shore,  it  appears 


12  WATER. 

generally  of  a  beautiful  green,  and  when  viewed 
from  a  greater  distance  it  assumes  an  azure  hue. 
The  folar  Seas  are,  according  to  Scoresby,  of  an 
ultramarine  blue,  the  Mediterranean  is  sky  blue, 
(Costaz)  and  the  poets  themselves  would  find  it 
difficult  to  describe  the  exquisite  effects  of  color  in 
the  Bay  of  Naples,  when  the  rays  of  the  sun  cause 
the  waves  to  sparkle  with  a  thousand  fires  like  the 
sapphire  and  the  emerald.  The  Black  Sea  owes  its 
name  to  its  frequent  tempests ;  the  White  Sea  to  its 
masses  of  floating  ice. 

The  natural  hue  of  the  waters  is  frequently  modi- 
fied by  the  presence  of  animal  and  vegetable  life  ;  it 
is  thus  that  the  polar  regions  are  at  times  streaked 
with  millions  of  medusae,  the  yellow  shade  of  which, 
in  combination  with  the  blue  of  the  water,  produces 
green.  Certain  parts  of  the  sea  become  at  times 
suddenly  white  as  milk,  while  at  others  they  present 
the  color  of  blood.  These  singular  phenomena, 
which  were  observed  and  noted  by  ancient  authors, 
are  due  to  vast  quantities  of  sea-weed  which  float 
upon  the  waves  and  disguise  its  true  color. 

The  Bed  Sea  has  frequently  presented  the  ap- 
pearance of  a  sea  of  blood.  In  July,  1843,  for  two 
days  the  natural  color  of  the  waves  disappeared  be- 
neath a  pellicle  of  carmine.  Analogous  facts  have 
come  at  various  times  under  the  observation  of 
savants  in  the  Gulf  of  Oman,  and  not  far  from  the 
mouth  of  the  Tagus,  where  the  sailors  of  the  ship 
"  Oreole  "  saw,  in  1845,  the  waters  of  the  xltlantic 
covered  with  a  purple  mantle,  which  rapidly  spread 
over   a  surface  of  over  six   square   miles.     These 


THE   OCEAN.  lii 

accidental  colorations  were  for  many  centuries  a 
source  of  terror  to  the  superstitious ;  but  man  has 
now  ceased  to  behold  in  the  fortuitous  apparition 
of  microscopic  algae  floating  on  the  surface  of  the 
water,  signs  of  the  anger  of  heaven,  or  presages  of 
coming  calamities. 

The  black  mud  and  the  yellow  sand  which  carpet 
the  bottom  of  the  sea  modify  the  color  of  transpa- 
rent, shallow  waters,  and  produce  the  most  diverse 
eifects,  owing  to  the  refraction  and  play  of  light. 
The  state  of  the  sky  is  also  a  cause  of  variations, 
and  the  sea  may  be  looked  upon  as  a  vast  mirror, 
changing  its  aspect  according  to  the  images  which 
are  reflected  upon  it.  Black  and  sombre  when 
thick  clouds  hide  the  rays  of  the  sun,  it  attires  it- 
self in  a  thousand  sparkhng  fires,  when  the  vault  of 
the  firmament  is  transparent  and  azure.  Nature 
has,  says  the  poet — 

•*  Made  the  skies  to  gleam  o'er  the  ocean, 
And  the  ocean  to  reflect  the  skies. " 

In  some  places,  as  in  the  neighborhood  of  the 
West  India  Islands,  the  sea  is  so  perfectly  trans- 
parent, that  a  ship  traversing  those  waters  seems  to 
hang  suspended  in  the  air,  and  the  inexperienced 
traveller  is  seized  with  vertigo  as  he  looks  down  into 
the  vast  deep,  and  beholds  there,  for  the  first  time, 
a  whole  world  of  plants  and  animals  full  of  life  and 
action. 

In  the  polar  regions,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is 
gi-eenish,  in  the  Gulf  of  Guinea  white,  near  the 
Maldives  black,  on  the  coast  of  California  red  as 


14  WATER. 

cinnabar,  in  the  Persian  Sea  green, — and  as  with 
every  rolling  wave  and  every  fleeting  cloud  the 
colors  change — as  in  the  day,  sunlight  and  reflected 
Hght  weave  strange  fantastic  images  on  the  dark 
green  surface,  and  by  the  aid  of  the  wind  a  thousand 
beautiful  patterns,  while  at  night  countless  mollusks 
light  it  up  in  red,  yellow  and  green  hues,  the  ocean 
may  well  be  called  the  fairy  kingdom  of  Light. 

It  is  probable,  however,  that  the  water  has  a  color 
of  its  own,  which  appears  to  be  either  blue  or 
green.  In  this  respect  it  resembles  the  air,  color- 
less to  a  certain  thickness,  and  blue  when  our  eyes 
can  sound  its  depths.  As  we  descend  into  the 
ocean,  the  emerald  shades  gradually  disappear,  the 
hght  of  day  fades  away,  and  we  penetrate  little  by 
little  into  a  gloomy  twilight,  and  are  at  length  hur- 
ried beneath  thick  darkness. 

During  the  night  the  sea  becomes  radiant  with  a 
strange  lustre.  The  white  foam  is  replaced  by 
fiery  streamers,  which  continue  to  unroll  themselves 
until  lost  to  sight ;  each  wave  turning  upon  itself 
shines  with  a  mysterious  brilhancy  ;  each  billow 
sheds  luminous  rays.  These  phenomena  are  the 
the  effect  of  an  infinitude  of  animalculse,  which  illu- 
mine the  undulations  of  the  waves,  while  the  stars 
are  lighting  up  the  broad  expanse  of  the  heavens. 
Nothing  is  more  striking  than  this  spectacle,  which 
appears  in  aU  its  splendor  and  under  the  most  va- 
ried aspects  on  the  surface  of  southern  seas.  Sailors 
talk  of  enormous  balls  of  fire,  which  appear  to  roU 
over  the  waves,  of  cones  of  light  pirouetting  o\ei' 
themselves,   shining    garlands,   glittering    serpents, 


THE  OCEAN.  15 

and  of  bright  clouds  which  wander  over  the  waves 
in  the  midst  of  the  darkness.  The  phenomenon  is 
in  such  cases  complicated  by  a  mhage,  and  the  noc- 
turnal dance  of  phosphorescent  animals  explains  all 


The  Phosphorescent  Sea. 

these  marvels.  The  sea  is  not  a  vast  liquid  desert ; 
there  is  not  a  single  drop  of  water  inaccessible  to 
the  manifestations  of  life,  and  in  which  the  prodi- 


16  WATER. 


gious  fecundity  of  nature  does  not  bring  into  play 
the  activity  of  a  whole  animate  world. 


TEMPERATURE. 

The  ocean  consists  of  three  immense  thermic 
basins,  the  two  first  being  situated  at  the  poles, 
while  the  third,  lymg  midway  between  the  two 
others,  is  situated  near  the  equator.  The  temper- 
ature of  the  sea,  heated  by  the  action  of  the  solar 
rays,  under  the  equator,  is  tolerably  high ;  but  at  a 
depth  of  1,200  fathoms  it  sinks  down  to  40°.  The 
further  we  go  from  the  equator,  so  much  nearer  to 
the  surface  do  we  find  this  temperature  of  40°  ;  and 
on  reaching  a  latitude  of  45°  it  appears  as  near  as 
600  fathoms.  At  this  distance  from  the  equator 
there  appears  to  exist  all  round  the  globe  a  zone,  in 
which  the  temperature  of  the  ocean  is  constant  and 
uniform  in  aU  depths.  In  proportion  as  we  recede 
from  this  hmit  and  approach  either  of  the  pole^  we 
find  a  lowering  of  the  level  of  uniform  temperature, 
and  it  is  only  found  at  a  depth  of  750  fathoms,  in 
the  latitude  of  70°.  Near  the  poles  themselves  the 
surface  of  the  water  is  frozen,  and  formidable  gla- 
ciers float  over  it  during  the  whole  year.  Immense 
mountains  of  ice  are  constantly  being  drifted  along 
by  the  waves ;  and  the  hght,  as  it  plays  ovei 
these  transparent  masses,  produces  one  of  the 
finest  spectacles  given  to  man  to  contemplate  on 
earth. 

Scenes  really  magical  break  the  monotony  ol 
these  arctic  regions,  where  lofty  structures  of  ice 


''iE!!i!i:;!!a:!iii 


1ii;i:!!Ei"Si'''S!f^^ 


m 


THE   OCEAN.  17 

present  themselves  to  the  dazzled  gaze  of  the  voy- 
ager. Light  gusts  of  wind  appear  to  impart  a  gen- 
tle, quivering  motion  to  the  transparent  shafts  and 
the  floating  colonnades,  when  lo!  the  whole  disap- 
pears as  if  beneath  an  enchanter's  wand,  to  reap- 
pear at  a  distance  under  new  forms ;  and  though 
not  an  atom  of  vegetation  bears  witness  to  the  vital- 
ity of  the  earth  or  charms  the  eye,  the  sky  produces 
pictures  of  the  most  thrilhng  beauty.  But  at  what 
cost  does  the  voyager  behold  all  this  strange  loveli- 
ness ?  In  order  to  see  it  he  must  endure  the  long 
nights  of  an  arctic  winter,  and  live  in  the  midst  of 
frightful  sohtudes ;  hidden  under  a  pall  of  thick 
darkness,  everything  around  him  is  mysterious  and 
terrible  ;  and  the  strange  sounds  made  by  the  ice- 
bergs, as  they  dash  against  one  another  and  crumble 
into  fragments,  fill  the  mind  with  the  most  mourn- 
ful presentiments.  Terrible  indeed  is  it  when  the 
luminary  from  which  we  derive  both  heat  and  life 
is  no  longer  to  be  seen  above  the  horizon. 


OHAPTEE  II. 

THE   MOTION   OF  THE   SEA — SUPERFICIAL  AGITATION. 

"  Wave  follows  wave;  billow  doth  billow  chase."— Delille. 

The  water  of  the  sea  is  in  ceaseless  agitation  ;  its 
surface  obeys  the  impulses  of  the  wind,  and  its 
waves  dash  themselves  madly  and  forever  against 
the  rockj^  shore.  To  look  upon  this  incessant  strug- 
gle between  land  and  water,  this  irreconcilable  strife 
betwixt  solid  and  liquid,  it  might  seem  as  though 
inert  matter,  jealous  of  organic  being,  strove  to 
imitate  the  activity  of  life.  "Whilst  gazing  upon  the 
waves  which  dash  against  the  cjifi's,  one  feels  in- 
clined to  question  whether  this  heaving  mass  be 
only  a  thing — only  an  inorganic  element ;  one  feels 
tempted  to  believe  that  a  breath  of  life  causes  this 
movement  in  these  never-resting  waves,  animating  a 
being  which  has  its  moments  of  anger  and  of  calm- 
ness, whose  voice,  at  times  sweet  and  harmonious, 
can  anon  become  menacing  as  the  cries  that  escape 
from  an  oppressed  bosom. 

Nevertheless  the  agitation  is  only  superficial,  and 
amounts  to  amazingly  little  when  compared  with 
the  vast  mass  of  the  ocean.     The  fiercest  tempest 


THE   OCEAN,  19 

that  ever  lashes  the  waves  of  the  Atlantic  produces 
but  a  faint  ripple  on  the  surface  ;  its  waves  never 
rise  above  twenty  feet.  When  wave  meets  wave,  of 
course  a  fierce  contest  arises ;  and  as  the  two  ter- 
rible combatants  grapple  with  each  other,  the  spray 
lises  aloft,  and  is,  at  times,  tossed  a  hundred  or 
a  hundred  and  twenty  feet  high.  But  even  such  a 
distance  counts  but  a  trifle  when  the  sea  has  a  depth 
of  thousands  of  fathoms. 

•'  Far,  far  beneath,  the  noise  of  tempests  dieth. 
And  silver  waves  chime  ever  peacefully  ; 
And  no  rude  storm,  how  fierce  so  e'er  it  flieth, 
Disturbs  the  Sabbath  of  that  deeper  sea. " 

It  is  a  very  different  thing,  however,  with  the 
tidal  waves.  These  affect  the  whole  mass,  and  the 
entire  ocean  seems  to  arise  in  a  gigantic  effort  to 
follow  the  moon,  which  it  adores,  and  finding  all  en- 
deavors vain,  to  fall  despairing  back  into  its  place 
again.  They  produce  sudden  and  fearful  effects 
where  they  appear  regularly ;  but  far  greater,  and 
sometimes  truly  awful  phenomena,  when,  as  spring 
tuies,  they  overleap  all  bounds,  or  unexpectedly  rise 
where  they  were  never  seen  before.  Of  old,  these 
fearful,  sudden  visitations  were  ascribed  by  the 
superstitious  to  the  wrath  of  some  offended  dignity  ; 
and  it  is  well  known  that  Aristotle  was  reported  to 
have  drowned  himself  because  he  was  unable  to 
fathom  the  mystery  of  these  irregular  tides.  Even 
inland  lakes  are  not  always  exempt  from  such  catas- 
trophes. As  late  as  the  summer  of  1871  the  town 
of  Duluth,  in  Minnesota,  was  thus  inundated  by  a 


20 


WATEK. 


considerable  tide  rising  from  Tjake  Superior,  {ind 
making  repeated  assaults  upon  the  apparently 
doomed  city. 


Storm  Scene. 


Sucli  gigantic  waves,  while  they  are  to  be  met 
with  in  almost  all  seas,  have  different  effects :  near 


THB  OCEAN.  21 

the  coasts  they  give  birth  to  breakers,  w  nich  are  a 
just  object  of  dread  to  mariners ;  at  the  moutli  of 
rivers  they  produce  soHd  bars,  and  this  phenomenon 
assumes  enormous  proportions  on  our  own  shores, 
where  the  largest  fluvial  arteries  in  the  world  fall 
into  the  ocean.  At  the  period  of  the  high  tides 
noining  is  more  terrible  than  the  struggle  between 
the  waves  of  the  sea  and  the  current  of  the  Amazon. 
Instead  of  requiring  six  hours  for  the  rising  tide, 
the  sea  rises  in  three  minutes.  The  whole  breadth 
of  the  river  is  overrun  by  one  tremendous  wave  15 
feet  deep,  and  by  a  legion  of  waves  which  follow 
one  another,  and,  rushing  up  the  stream,  cause  the 
air  to  echo  with  a  fearful  thunder.  All  obstacles 
are  overthrown  or  destroyed  ;  trees  are  uprooted  or 
snapped  in  two  ;  entire  plains,  lifted  from  their  level, 
are  drifted  away,  and  everything  swept  out  to  a 
distance  of  600  feet  from  the  coast. 

It  is  to  tidal  waves,  coming  from  opposite  direc- 
tions and  meeting,  that  the  not  less  formidable  phe- 
nomena of  whirlpools  are  due,  once  famous  in  song 
and  story.  Among  these  the  most  celebrated  used 
to  be  the  Maelstrom.  It  was  represented  as  a  gulf 
perpetually  roaring,  always  yawning  to  swallow  up 
any  ship  that  might  venture  too  near  its  formidable 
jaws  ;  an  everlasting  waterspout,  which  was  believed 
to  make  the  effects  of  its  violence  felt  in  the  district 
of  Lofoden  in  Norway,  and  indeed  more  or  less  over 
the  whole  North  Sea.  Waves  of  a  prodigious  height, 
hquid  mountains,  animated  by  a  hurried  and  giddy 
movement,  really  rush  from  all  points  of  the  com- 
pass towards  the  same  point,  pursuing  each  other 


22  WATER. 

with  fury,  and  at  length  suddenly  disappearing  as  if 
swallowed  up  in  a  deep  abyss.  But  its  size  and  its 
power  have  alike  been  exaggerated  ;  and  recent  ex- 
plorations have  proved  its  comparative  insignifi- 
cance. 

In  like  manner,  all  the  romance  that  once  clus- 
tered around  the  far-famed  Sc/Ua  and  Charybdis 
has  long  since  given  way  to  sober  fact  and  thorough 
knowledge.  Where  Ulysses  once  trembled,  and 
Phoenician  sailors  brought  rich  offerings  to  appease 
the  pagan  deities,  Sicilian  fishermen  now  sail  boldly, 
and  at  best  utter  a  thoughtless  Ave,  in  honor  of  the 
great  queen  of  the  seas.  Their  terrors  have  passed 
away  with  ignorance  and  superstition  ;  and  like  the 
Maelstrom  they  are  avoided  only  when  continued 
winds  or  fierce  tempests  have  made  them  peculiarly 
violent. 


THE  TroES. 

' '  If  the  waters  offer  matter  of  wonderment  to  oiir  sight,  it  is  mainly  in  the 
spectacle  of  the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  sea." — Pliny. 

The  waves  are  the  caprices  of  the  sea  ;  they  vary 
according  to  localities,  following  the  impetus  of  the 
wind,  and  are  not  governed  by  any  force  which  is 
constant  in  its  eftects.  The  sea  is,  however,  agi- 
tated by  other  more  regular  movements,  which  may 
be  looked  upon  as  the  most  admirable  wheels  in  the 
great  mechanism  of  Nature.  Our  globe  is  isolated 
in  the  immensity  of  the  universe,  but  it  is  not  soli- 
tary. Ever  subject  to  the  influence  of  those  stars 
which  people  space,  it  yields  to  their  attraction ;  it 


THE   OCEAN. 


23 


is  in  close  relations  with  the  skies.  Evtn  as  the 
flower  looks  up  to  the  sun,  turning  its  face  towards 
the  great  source  of  light,  so  twice  a  day  the  ocean 
swells  her  bosom  and  raises  herself  up  under  the 
powerful  attraction  of  sun  and  moon.  The  com- 
bined action  of  the  two  luminaries  sweeps  daily 
around  the  globe  two  immense  waves,  which  rise 


Equinoctial  Tidal  Wave. 

to  their  utmost  heights  at  the  new  and  the  full 
moon.  During  six  months  of  the  year  the  high 
tides  occur  in  the  day  time,  and  during  the  other 
six  months  at  night.  At  that  period  they  encroach 
upon  the  shore  in  order  to  bathe  those  parts  which 
have    heretofore  been  sheltered  from  contact  witlj 


24  WATER. 

thf^  waters.  The  most  considerable  tides  rise  in  the 
open  sea  to  a  height  of  about  20  feet ;  but  as  they 
approach  the  seaboard  of  the  continents,  which  ap- 
pear to  oppose  barriers  to  their  invasion,  they 
sweep  rapidly  in,  clear  all  obstacles,  and  sometimes 
even  rise  60  feet  above  their  mean  level. 

All  seas  are  more  or  less  subject  to  this  marvel- 
lous influence  of  the  tides  ;  everywhere,  beneath  the 
empire  of  the  waves,  ebb  and  flow  depress  and  ele- 
vate the  liquid  surface.  Incessantly  opposed  and 
modified  by  the  shape  of  the  coasts,  by  headlands, 
by  currents,  and  by  the  force  of  the  winds,  the 
action  of  the  tides  is  most  felt  in  straits  and  in  gulfs. 
Some  of  the  highest  are  met  with  in  the  gulf  of 
St.  Malo,  in  the  British  Channel,  and  in  the  Pent- 
land  Frith.  Their  vertical  height  is  nearly  50  feet 
off  Ushant,  45  between  Jersey  and  St.  Malo,  and 
from  60  to  75  near  the  south  coast  of  the  Bay  of 
Fundy.  In  the  polar  regions  Franklin  has  proved 
that  the  tide  never  rises  above  20  inches,  and  some- 
times only  three  ;  and  in  the  centre  of  the  German 
Ocean  it  is  absolutely  imperceptible. 

It  has  often  been  affirmed  that  the  waters  of  the 
Mediterranean  were  not  subject  to  the  oscillations 
of  the  tide ;  this  assertion  has  been  disproved  by 
observations  made  at  Toulon,  at  Venice,  and  at  Al- 
giers, in  which  places  the  existence  of  ebb  and  flow 
have  been  observed.  In  all  seas  of  small  extent, 
and  in  general  in  aU  lakes,  the  tide  has  bat  slight 
perceptible  influence.  This  fact  is  very  easily  ex- 
plained. When  the  tide  is  high  in  one  part  of  the 
ocean  it  is  low  at  a  distance  of  90°,  and  the  liquid 


THE   OCEAN.  25 

piomontorj  is  formed  at  the  expense  of  tbe  sur- 
rounding waters.  In  lakes  of  small  exteut  this 
species  of  compensation  is  impossible  ;  and  the  flow 
of  the  tide  cannot  raise  the  surface  of  the  water. 
These  facts  were  often  presented  as  an  objection  to 
the  Newtonian  theory  of  the  tides,  but  are,  on  the 
contrary,  a  complete  confirmation. 

The  tides  purify  and  wash  the  shores,  cleaning 
and  sweeping  our  ports;  the  currents,  which  result 
therefrom,  disencumber  our  roadsteads  of  the 
masses  of  mud  which  load  them,  clear  the  mouths 
of  rivers,  and  produce  a  pure  and  wholesome  fresh- 
ness. These  undulations  of  the  ocean,  these  power- 
ful pulsations  of  the  water,  are  influenced  by  stars 
which  are  separated  from  our  planet  by  millions  of 
leagues  :  nor  have  they  less  mathematical  regularity 
than  that  which  directs  those  planetary  bodies 
themselves.  At  a  fixed  hour  the  formidable  masses 
of  water,  raised  by  an  invisible  power,  rise  and  ap- 
proach the  shore.  They  rise,  they  precipitate  them- 
selves with  resistless  power,  but  only  to  stop  gently 
at  a  precise  moment,  without  ever  passing  the 
boundary  which  Nature  has  traced.  It  is  surely  an 
honor  to  the  human  race  to  have  succeeded  in  cal- 
culating the  very  hour,  nay,  the  exact  minute,  in 
which  the  oscillations  of  the  sea  begin  and  end  in 
every  part  of  our  globe. 

Nevertheless,  as  yet  unknown  combinations  will, 
at  times,  produce  terrible  disasters  that  cannot  be 
avoided  by  any  foresight  or  precaution.  Thus,  oc- 
casionally, a  powerful  wind  happens  to  blow  in  the 
same  direction  with  the  tide,  and  gives  it  inci  edible 


26  WATER. 

force  and  fury.  No  lofty  embankment  reared  by 
the  hand  of  man,  no  rocky  rampart  raised  by  Na- 
ture herself,  can  then  withstand  its  power ;  imd 
towns  are  swept  away  in  an  instant,  and  thousands 
of  persons  lose  their  lives.  In  some  parts  of  the 
globe  the  tide  produces  remarkable  effects  fiom  the 
peculiar  formation  of  the  coast  which  it  strikes.  The 
most  striking  instance  is  that  of  the  island  of  Mau- 
ritiTi^,  where  a  long,  rocky  promontory  runs  far  out 
into  the  sea,  and  has  been  worn  by  the  waves  into 
Qumerous  caves  and  grottoes  of  marvellous  beauty 
and  grotesqueness.  The  waters  have  forced  for 
themselves  an  outlet  through  the  roof  of  one  of 
these  caves,  and  when  the  tidal  wave  reaches  the 
coast  it  fills  the  cave,  and  then,  with  indescribable 
grandeur,  flies  through  the  opening  to  a  height  of 
sixty  feet,  accompanied  by  a  thundering  roar  which 
is  heard  for  miles  out  at  sea. 


THE  CURRENTS. 

"  We  observe  in  the  sea  rapid  currents,  tlie  limits  of  whicn  appear  to  be  u 
invariable  as  those  which  control  the  powers  of  rivers." — Buffon. 

There  exist  in  the  sea  immense  currents  which 
may  be  regarded  as  veritable  rivers  in  the  bosom  of 
the  ocean ;  veins  of  a  great  arterial  system,  they 
play  a  highly  important  part  in  the  harmonies  of  the 
globe.  They  establish  a  kind  of  equilibrium  be- 
tween the  extreme  temperatures  of  different  climates, 
transporting  toward  the  poles  the  warmer  waters  of 
the  tropics,  and  carrying  the  cold  waters  of  the  gla- 


THE   OCEAN.  27 

cial  regions  towards  the  torrid  coun cries  of  the 
world. 

Christopher  Columbus  was  one  of  the  first  to  re- 
cord observations  on  the  sea  currents.  He  recog- 
nized, after  his  second  voyage,  that  the  waters  of 
certain  parts  of  the  Atlantic  followed  the  apparent 
motion  of  the  stars.  "  The  waters,"  says  the  great 
navigator,  "  move  with  the  sky." 

The  physical  geography  of  the  ocean  is  a  science 
which  is  still  in  its  infancy,  the  initiative  having  been 
taken  by  an  able  and  fruitful  mind,  that  of  Commo- 
dore Maury,  and  it  is  only  lately  that  the  route 
taken  by  any  of  the  marine  currents  has  been  ac- 
curately determined.  It  is  now,  however,  distinctly 
known  that  the  march  of  the  waves  of  the  ocean  is 
as  regular  as  that  of  the  heavenly  bodies. 

Two  great  powers  cause  these  mysterious  move- 
ments in  the  ocean.  One  is  heat,  the  other,  the  rev- 
olution of  the  earth  around  its  axis. 

With  regard  to  the  former  we  must  bear  it  in 
mind  that  near  the  equator  the  water  of  the  sea  is 
heated  to  a  high  temperature  on  the  surface  while 
at  a  certain  depth  it  retains  an  icy  coldness.  The 
cold  polar  water,  heavier  than  the  heated  water  of 
the  tropics,  continually  rushes  up  from  the  two  poles, 
and  as  it  is  gradually  w^armed  up  in  its  progress 
toward  the  equator,  the  colder  water  flows  natu- 
rally below,  the  warmer,  much  lighter,  above.  The 
latter  is  in  this  manner  driven  toward  the  poles,  and 
meets  on  its  way  the  polar  water  coming  in  the  op- 
posite direction ;  this  forms  ciirrents  above  and  below 


28  WATER. 

each  other,  or  where  islands,  capes  and  continents 
make  this  impossible,  side  by  side. 

In  like  manner  the  rotation  of  the  earth  differs  at 
the  equator  and  at  the  poles :  at  the  equator  the 
earth  moves  with  a  velocity  of  1,400  feet  a  second, 
in  our  latitude  with  oilly  half  the  velocity.  The  polar 
current  can,  therefore,  not  go  straight  to  the  equator, 
but  is  apparently  checked  and  liows  from  east  to 
west ;  hence  the  north  polar  current  follows  the  coast 
of  North  America  and  the  south  polar  current  the 
coast  of  Chili.  In  the  tropics  both  are  affected  by 
the  trade  winds,  follow  their  impulse,  and  thus  form 
an  equatorial  current  nearly  250  miles  wide,  which 
encircles  the  earth. 

The  most  powerful  and  best  known  of  all  these 
currents  is  the  Gulf  Stream. 

It  is  the  prolongation  of  the  equatorial  current  of 
the  Atlantic,  which,  after  having  followed  Western 
Africa,  makes  a  bend  westward,  and,  widening  as  it 
goes  on,  veers  toward  America.  At  some  distance 
from  the  coast  one  branch  of  it  becomes  detached, 
descends  toward  the  south,  and  forms  the  Brazihan 
current.  The  main  artery,  on  the  contrary,  goes 
northward  to  the  coast  of  Guiana,  receives  in  its 
bosom  the  waters  of  the  Amazon  and  the  Orinoco, 
penetrating  at  last  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  along  the 
coast  of  which  it  travels. 

It  is  from  this  storehouse  that  the  equatorial  cur- 
rent escapes,  and  hence  it  bears  the  name  of  the  Gulf 
Stream.  It  precipitates  itself  across  the  straits  of 
Florida,  and  produces  an  impetuous  flood  of  900 
feet  in  depth  and  14  leagues  in  breadth.     It  travels 


THE  OCEAN.  29 

with  the  speed  of  nearly  six  miles  an  hour,  and  its 
waters,  warm  and  salt,  are  of  an  indigo  blue,  unlike 
their  green  shores,  formed  by  the  waves  of  the  sea. 
This  formidable  mass  of  warm  water  causes  great 
external  agitation  during  its  passage,  and  pursues 
its  course  without  mingling  with  the  ocean.  Com- 
pressed between  two  liquid  walls,  the  waters  of  the 
Gulf  Stream  form  a  moving  body,  which  glides  over 
the  empire  of  the  sea,  pushing  far  away  anything 
which  may  be  cast  adrift  upon  its  bosom.  "  In  the 
greatest  droughts,"  says  Maury,  "  it  never  becomes 
dry,  and  in  the  highest  floods  it  never  overflows  its 
boundaries.  Its  bed  and  shores  are  alike  layers  of 
cold  water.  In  no  part  of  the  world  does  there 
exist  so  majestic  a  current.  It  is  more  rapid  than 
the  Amazon,  more  impetuous  than  the  Mississippi, 
and  the  united  waters  of  these  two  rivers  do  not 
represent  a  thousandth  part  of  the  mass  which  it 
displaces." 

With  the  aid  of  the  thermometer  the  navigator 
can  follow  this  great  liquid  artery;  plunged  alter- 
nately in  its  edges  or  in  its  centre,  it  indicates  tem- 
peratures which  differ  15  degrees.  Powerful  and 
rapid,  the  Gulf  Stream  pursues  its  way  in  a  north- 
erly direction,  following  the  shores  of  the  United 
States  as  far  as  the  banks  of  Newfoundland.  It  then 
has  to  sustain  a  terrible  shock  from  a  polar  current, 
which  drifts  along  immense  icebergs,  absolute  moun- 
tains of  ice,  so  immense  that  one  of  them  weighing 
more  than  twenty  billions  of  tons  swept  the  vessel 
of  Lieutenant  cle  Haven  300  leagues  toward  the 
south.     The  Gulf  Stream,  with  its  warm  waters,  dis- 


30  WATER. 

solves  the  floating  ice  ;  the  icebergs  break  up  the 
soil ;  gravel,  and  even  small  fragments  of  rock,  which 
they  have  carried  along  with  them,  are  swallowed 
ap  by  the  sea.  The  myriads  of  infusoria  and  other 
animalcula?  which  swarm  in  the  Gulf  Stream  collect 
upon  these  fragments,  whilst  rocks,  earthy  matter, 
debris  of  every  description,  are  piled  up  and  heaped 
up  pell  mell,  till  they  rise  to  the  surface,  and  will  one 
day  appear  above  the  ocean  level,  promising  islands, 
and,  perhaps,  continents,  for  it  is  thus  that  the  banks 
of  Newfoundland  have  already  been  formed. 

But  in  this  fierce  contest  the  Gulf  Stream  is  van- 
quished. It  is  broken  by  the  impetuous  shock  and 
becomes  subdivided  into  several  currents.  One  of 
these  flows  northward  and  melts  the  ices  of  Norway, 
softening  its  rigorous  climate.  It  still  preserves  suf- 
ficient impulse  to  advance  as  far  as  Iceland,  and 
occasionally  to  cast  upon  the  coast  of  that  island 
trunks  of  trees  or  fragments  of  wood  which  it  has 
torn  from  the  shores  of  the  New  World.  It  is  the 
only  fuel  which  the  Icelanders,  half  frozen  as  they 
are  at  the  foot  of  a  volcano,  are  able  to  obtain. 

The  right  arm  of  the  Gulf  Stream  tends  eastward 
and  directs  its  course  to  the  British  Islands,  which 
it  surrounds  with  what  may  be  termed  a  mild  and 
genial  liquid  girdle.  It  softens  the  climate  of  Scot- 
land and  endows  it  with  emerald  prairies. 

Its  left  arm  enters  the  British  channel  and  causes 
the  fig-tree  to  flourish  in  Brittany,  while  it  forces 
into  early  maturity  those  fruits  of  the  earth  which 
so  richly  abound  in  Cornwall  and  Devonshire,  and 
supj)ly  the  markets  of  London  itself.     Without  this 


THE  .OCEAN.  31 

genial  current,  which  dispenses  so  widely  the  bless- 
ings of  life  and  heat,  Scotland  would  have  the  cli- 
mate of  Siberia,  which,  situated  beneath  the  same 
latitude,  has  to  endure  almost  intolerable  cold  ;  and 
without  its  soft  influence  the  winters  of  Brittany; 
would  be  no  longer  mild  as  thej  are.* 

During  the  winter,  landing  on  the  shores  of  the 
United  States  is  difficult  and  dangerous  ;  the  poor 
sailor  is  exposed  to  storms  of  snow  and  gales  of  cut- 
ting wind  which  severely  try  his  courage  and  his 
power  of  endurance.  Masses  of  ice  surround  his 
ship,  a  freezing  mist  benumbs  the  crew,  the  rudder 
becomes  fixed  and  frozen,  and  its  management  is  a 
hard  and  perilous  task.     Disaster  seems  imminent. 

But  the  Gulf  Stream  is  at  hand  to  help  the  voyager 
in  his  need. 

If  he  makes  haste  to  steer  his  vessel  into  the 
stream,  he  will  see  as  if  by  enchantment  summer  suc- 
ceed to  winter  ;  the  melting  ice  falls  gradually  off  and 
the  sailor  takes  heart  under  the  reviving  warmth. 
Like  a  new  Antaeus  he  regains  strength,  and,  thanks 
to  the  generous  current,  he  reaches  his  desired  haven 
and  once  more  beholds  his  native  land. 

The  Gulf  Stream  exercises  an  important  influence 
upon  meteorology.  Violent  storms  and  squalls 
usually  follow  in  its  track.  The  waves  of  this 
mighty  current  are  frequently  agitated  by  tempests 

*  The  temperature  of  the  Gulf  Stream  varies  in  its  widest  part. 
The  principal  current  is  composed  of  lesser  ones  running  paral- 
lel with  each  other,  but  having  various  degrees  of  temperature. 
At  its  entrance  into  the  Caribbean  Sea  it  has  a  maximum  tempera- 
ture  of  about  96  degrees. 


32  WATER. 

excited  by  gales,  which  blow  in  a  circular  course  , 
terrible  cyclones  ;  vast  columns  of  air  in  every  direc- 
tion, revolve  upon  themselves  and  give  birth  to  tre- 
mendous whirlpools.  The  sea  is  still  more  formid- 
able when  the  wind  blows  in  a  direction  contrary  to 
that  of  the  Gulf  Stream,  and  it  often  happens  that 
the  atmospheric  currents  traverse  from  one  end  to 
the  other,  the  curve  described  by  this  body  of  warm 
water. 

Another  gulf  stream,  less  known,  but  by  no  means 
less  important  in  the  economy  of  our  globe,  is  that 
of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  which,  sweeping  along  the 
coasts  of  Japan  and  Asia  to  the  northeast,  crosses 
the  Pacific  and  washes  our  northwest  coast  as  far 
down  as  the  Bay  of  Panama,  where  it  again  diverges 
to  the  westward  and  forms  the  great  equatorial  cur- 
rent of  the  Pacific.  Its  average  temperature  is  only 
about  85°,  and  on  its  heat  depends  the  extraordi- 
nary productiveness  of  Japan.  Another  effect  of 
this  singular  current  is  the  absence  of  all  icebergs 
in  the  Northern  Ocean,  south  of  Behring  Straits  :  a 
branch  of  this  gulf  stream,  after  striking  the  Aleu- 
tian Islands,  sweeps  the  Behring  Straits  into  tho 
Northern  Ocean,  and  thus  relieves  whalers  of  a  for- 
midable danger.  Another  peril,  however,  even  more 
fatal,  they  cannot  escape,  for  the  contact  of  the 
w^arm  waters  of  this  current  with  the  cold  waters 
of  the  Japanese  seas  produces  constant  and  dense 
fogs,  precisely  as  the  Atlantic  gulf  stream  gives 
rise  to  similar  fogs  bn  our  northeast  coast.  Our 
new  possessions  in  Alaska  benefit  largely  by  this 
Pacific  stream,  enjoying,  at  least  on  the  coast,  a 


THE   OCEAN.  33 

wonderfully  soft  and  mild  climate,  the  temperature 
in  winter  corresponding  to  that  of  Washington  city. 

Il\  the  vast  liquid  triangle  formed  by  the  Azores, 
the  Canaries,  and  the  Cape  Verd  islands,  in  the 
centre  of  the  great  oceanic  circle,  of  which  the  Gulf 
Stream  forms  a  part,  are  to  be  found,  on  a  tract  ex- 
tending ovei  many  thousand  leagues,  such  a  quan- 
tity of  marine  plants  that  the  progress  of  ships  is 
frequently  obstructed.  The  companions  of  Colum- 
bus, alarmed  at  this  obstacle,  and  astonished  at  the 
sight  of  such  abundant  vegetation,  and  all  these  fuci, 
with  their  dose-growing  stalks,  imagined  themselves 
to  have  reached  the  extreme  limits  of  the  navigable 
world. 

This  accumulation  of  algse  is  also  due  to  the  cur- 
rents of  the  sea.  The  Atlantic  is  an  immense  basin 
in  the  midst  of  which  the  weeds  torn  from  its  shores 
form  what  is  called  the  Sargasso  Sea.  It  can  be 
shown  by  a  simple  experiment  how  nature,  with  her 
powerful  resources,  accomplished  this  phenomenon. 
Place  some  light  substances,  such  as  pieces  of  cork, 
in  a  basin  full  of  water,  propel  it  into  circular  motion 
and  they  will  immediately  collect  in  the  centre.  The 
Sargasso  Sea  is  not  indeed  a  phenomenon  peculiar 
to  the  Atlantic  ;  it  is  to  be  found,  on  the  contrary,  in 
all  great  oceans.  The  Pacific  Ocean,  also,  has  its 
gulf  stream  and  its  Sea  of  Sargasso. 

In  the  South  Sea  the  currents  are  far  less  known, 
and  are  in  fact  much  less  perfectly  developed.  It 
is  probable,  pJso,  that  these  maritime  rivers  are  not 
mere  isolated  currents,  but  parts  of  a  great  net- 
work— individual  veins  of  a  vast  system  of  circula- 


34  WATER. 

tion.  They  form  thus  an  extended  circuit,  indicc-tec^ 
bj  corked  bottles  which  have  been  caused  to  float 
on  their  surface.  Several  of  these  little  floating 
buoys,  left  in  the  water  off  the  coast  of  Africa,  have 
been  found  again  after  many  years,  near  the  shores 
of  Scotland,  they  having  followed  regular  routes 
traced  on  the  surface  of  the  ocean.  The  cocoanuts 
of  the  Seychelles  are  in  the  same  way  carried  along 
by  the  marine  current.  After  having  borne  them  for 
a  voyage  of  400  leagues,  the  waves  cast  them  on  the 
shores  of  Malabar,  where  they  take  root,  and  thus 
thrive  far  away  from  the  country  which  gave  them 
birth.  The  Hindoos  believe  that  the  ocean  nourishes 
in  its  depths  the  marvellous  trees  which  produce 
that  enormous  fruit. 

The  great  current  which  takes  its  rise  off  the  east- 
ern coast  of  South  America,  has  carried  from  Guiana 
and  Brazil  no  less  than  thirteen  species  of  plants, 
as  far  as  Congo.  Certain  other  seeds,  provided  with 
a  covering  impervious  to  water,  are  also  tossed  by 
the  waves  and  rocked  by  the  storm  during  their 
voyage  from  India  to  Brazil. 

The  fruit  of  the  cocoanut-tree  and  the  pods  of  the 
mimosa  are  snatched  from  the  soil  of  equatorial 
America  by  these  rivers  of  the  sea,  to  be  afterwards 
cast  upon  the  rocks  of  Scandinavia,  where  the  wan^ 
of  heat  alone  prevents  their  further  development. 

These  highways  of  the  sea  render,  besides,  signal 
service  to  navigation,  and,  thanks  to  the  facilities 
which  they  give,  we  can  accomplish  certain  voyages 
in  as  many  days  as  it  required  months  before  their 
direction  was  well  understood. 


THE  OCEAN.  36 

Thus  a  vessel  coming  from  Europe  to  this  country 
follows  the  coast  of  the  Old  World  till  it  falls  into 
the  equatorial  current,  which  carries  it  swiftly  across 
to  the  West  India  Islands ;  while  our  vessels,  going 
to  Europe,  are  similarly  aided  by  the  Gulf  Stream. 
Ships  sailing  along  the  coasts  of  Peru  and  Chili 
northward,  require  only  as  many  days  as  they  require 
weeks  when  sailing  southward,  aided,  as  they  are, 
by  the  Pacific  current  in  that  locality. 

The  main  purpose  of  these  currents,  however, 
seems  to  be  the  equalization  of  the  temperature  of 
our  globe.  The  Antarctic  current  thus  tempers  the 
heat  on  the  coast  of  South  America,  while  the  warm 
Gulf  Stream  endows  Ireland,  England,  and  Norway 
with  mild  winters,  and  checks  the  polar  ice,  which 
does  not  extend  half  as  near  to  Northern  Europe  as 
it  does  to  our  continent.  Hence  in  the  Old  World 
trees  grow  ten  degrees  farther  north  than  with  us. 
and  when  Labrador  is  buried  under  snow  and  ice, 
Norway,  under  the  same  latitude,  produces  rye, 
potatoes  and  buckwheat,  oaks  reach  Drontheim, 
beeches  Christiania,  chestnuts  the  northern  part  of 
Scotland,  and  myrtles  and  camellias — here  rarely 
surviving  a  winter  north  of  the  Carolinas — thrive  in 
Ireland  and  southern  England. 

Hence  agriculture  and  navigation,  with  all  their 
beneficent  inflr.encos,  can  be  carried  on  in  Europe 
at  a  latitude  at  which,  in  our  country,  life  is  impos- 
sible to  all  except  the  hunter  and  trapper.  Large 
portions  of  the  Old  World  depend  literally  for  their 
existence,  as  for  all  their  civilization,  on  the  Gulf 
Stream — a  year's  interruption,  and  northern  Europe 


36  WATER. 

would  have  long,  cold  winters,  short  hot  summers, 
frozen  lakes,  and  snow- covered  plains,  stunted  trees, 
and  a  few  berries  instead  of  abundant  cereals. 

The  discovery  of  these  currents,  so  long  unknown, 
is  one  of  the  proudest  conquests  of  science,  a  fruit- 
ful victory  which  offers  to  the  thinking  mind  a  vast 
field  for  study  and  meditation — a  discovery  invalu- 
able to  the  navigator,  who,  lost  in  the  immensity  of 
ocean,  can  now  find  tracks  already  formed,  threads 
which  can  guide  him  through  the  vast  labyrinth. 

Duperrey,  Berghaus,  Petermann,  and  more  recent 
ly  Maury,  have  prepared  admirable  charts  of  the 
ocean.  The  circulation  of  these  currents,  which  fur- 
row, as  it  were,  the  fluid  portion  of  the  globe,  is 
represented  with  the  direction  of  their  course,  and 
the  various  temperatures  are  also  indicated.  Tht. 
seaman,  furnished  with  this  atlas,  is  armed  with  new 
resources  which  permit  him  to  risk  more  hopefully 
the  fortune  which  he  confides  to  the  uncertain  waves. 
The  fisherman  also  has  gained  thereby  much  useful 
information,  and  can  now  find  his  way  in  all  seasons 
to  the  quarters  most  favorable  to  his  craft,  in  follow- 
ing the  indications  afforded  by  the  temperature  of 
the  water. 

Hp  must  never,  for  instance,  enter  into  the  cur- 
rents of  warmer  water,  if  he  wishes  to  invade  the 
territories  of  the  whale^  for  that  huge  animal  only 
exists  in  cold  regions ;  the  torrid  zone  arrests  his 
march  like  a  wall  of  flame. 

Besides  these  great  ocean  currents,  there  are  sev- 
eral smaller  currents  well  known,  most  of  which, 
however,  are  not  permanent  but  periodical.     Thus 


THE  OCEAN.  37 

the  Persian  Gulf  discharges  a  part  of  its  waters 
from  September  to  May,  which  returns  to  it  during 
the  other  months  of  the  year.  The  Baltic,  also,  has 
a  continuous  current  into  the  North  Sea  through 
the  Sound  and  the  two  Belts,  probably  because  it 
does  not  evaporate  all  the  water  with  which  its  nu 
merous  tributaries  supply  it  during  the  summer. 
The  Mediterranean,  on  the  contrary,  aided  by  the 
burning  winds  of  Africa,  evaporates  so  actively,  that 
currents  of  new  supplies  enter  it  periodically  from 
the  Black  Sea  through  the  Dardanelles,  and  from 
the  Atlantic  through  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar.  A 
current  in  the  opposite  direction  has  often  been  sus- 
pected, but  is  improbable,  since  the  Mediterranean 
has  both  a  higher  temperature  and  a  larger  admix- 
ture of  salt  than  the  Atlantic.  A  still  smaller  cur- 
rent sweeps  along  the  coast  of  Syria  southward,  and 
has  been  the  cause  of  filling  up  the  ancient  ports  of 
Phoenicia,  and  thus  almost  destroying  the  commerce 
of  Syria. 

In  all  these  oceans,  however,  the  great  circulation 
is  not  merely  superficial,  but  submarine  under-cur- 
rents  traverse  from  side  to  side  the  empire  of  Nep- 
tune, in  the  bosom  of  which  immense  hidden  arter- 
ies extend  themselves  in  unknown  directions. 

In  the  middle  of  the  Atlantic,  Lieutenants  Walsh 
and  Lee,  of  the  U.  S.  Navy,  having  fastened  to  a  fish- 
ing line  a  block  of  wood  charged  with  lead,  dropped 
it  into  the  sea  to  a  depth  of  from  2,500  to  3,000 
feet.  The  apparatus  was  fastened  to  a  float  in  order 
to  prevent  its  sinking  to  the  bottom,  and  then  left 
to  the  mercy  of  the  waves.     "  It  was  a  truly  singular 


38  WATER. 

spectacle  to  see  the  float  advancing  against  wind 
and  sea  and  current,  at  its  usual  rate.  The  crew 
could  not  suppress  their  astonishment;  it  seemed  as 
if  some  marine  monster  must  be  bearing  the  block 
along." 

An  EngUsh  officer  was  crossing  the  Danish  Sound 
in  an  open  boat.  He  found  himself  carried  away  by  a 
current.  He  threw  into  the  water  a  pail  furnished 
with  a  cannon  ball  which  he  allowed  to  sink  to  a 
great  depth,  holding,  at  the  same  time,  this  novel 
species  of  anchor  by  a  long  cord.  It  was  not  long 
before  the  boat  began  to  be  carried  along  in  an  en- 
tirely different  direction,  exactly  the  reverse  of  that 
of  the  surface  current.  A  submarine  stream  carried 
into  its  own  course  the  craft  to  which  the  ball  had 
been  attached,  and  rivalled  the  surface  current  in 
its  force. 

What  enigmas  lie  still  buried  in  that  ever-moving 
mass !  What  problems  to  solve — what  observations 
to  follow  up — what  experiments  to  try  in  order  to 
unveil  all  the  forces  which  set  in  motion  the  mechan- 
ism of  the  waves ! 

Astronomy  has  found  a  Newton  to  pierce  with  his 
eyes  the  profound  mysteries  of  the  heavens;  but 
the  army  of  waves,  continually  at  war  with  daring 
man,  who  braves  the  combat,  holds  concealed  man} 
more  mysteries  which  a  future  Galileo  may  reveal 
to  us. 

What  sets  in  motion  this  mighty  marine  circula- 
tion ?  Is  it  due,  as  Bom  me  affirms,  to  the  impetus 
of  the  wind,  and  the  action  of  tides  ? 

The  agitation  of  the  air  produces  the  superficial 


THE  OCEAN.  39 

iigitation  of  the  waves,  but  that  solution  only  gives 
rise  to  another  question,  viz.,  how  the  submarine 
streams  are  set  in  motion  ? 

The  vast  wave  produced  under  sidereal  influence 
occasions  a  vertical  motion,  but  it  is  impossible  that 
it  should  cause  the  movement  of  the  Gulf  Stream. 
The  prime  mover  of  the  great  oceanic  machine,  is  to 
be  sought  elsewhere.  Where  then  is  the  secret 
spring  hidden.  Whence  comes  the  first  impetus? 
Heat  is  the  most  obvious  cause  of  the  marine  circu- 
lation, but  even  heat,  to  use  an  expression  of  Mau- 
ry's, would  prove  insufficient  here.  There  is  another 
force  at  work,  stranger  and  not  less  important,  and 
that  force  is  salt.  Salt  is  one  of  the  chief  causes  in 
producing  the  circulation  of  the  sea..  "  So  abun- 
dant is  it  in  the  sea,  that  were  all  the  salt  in  the 
ocean  collected  and  placed  upon  America,  it  would 
form  a  mountain  4,500  feet  in  thickness." 

We  perceive  that  evaporation  carries  daily  from 
the  equatorial  seas  enormous  quantities  of  water, 
which  rise  into  the  air  in  the  form  of  clouds. 

But  this  water  is  all  fresh.  Its  withdrawal  conse- 
quently only  tends  to  increase  the  saltness  of  the  sea. 
The  surface  layers,  rendered  more  saline  by  the 
action  of  heat,  descend  and  become  replaced  by 
lower  and  lighter  strata.  Thus  a  double  vertical 
current  is  produced.  In  the  deep  layers,  mean- 
while, is  produced  at  the  same  time  a  movement 
toward  the  poles,  of  the  denser  waters  of  the  equa- 
torial regions.  The  ocean  is  thus  more  or  less 
movable,  denser  or  lighter,  in  proportion  as  it  is 
fresh  or  salt.     Its  waters  move  and  become  amtatcd 


4:0  WATER. 

under  the  influence  of  their  variable  specific  gravity. 
The  veins  of  the  sea,  which  streak  only  the  sur- 
face of  the  waves  and  not  the  depth  of  the  ocean, 
have  a  higher  temperature  than  the  adjacent  waves, 
which  more  than  counterbalances  the  difierence  in 
their  degrees  of  saltness.  At  the  same  time,  in  nam- 
ing salt  as  one  of  the  causes  of  marine  circulation, 
we  have  not  thereby  entirely  accounted  for  the  lat- 
ier.  Other  causes  combine  with  the  saline  property 
of  the  sea.  Maury  ingeniously  suggests  that  the 
motive  power  of  the  currents  resides,  to  a  large  ex- 
tent, in  the  infinitesimally  small  beings  which  peo- 
ple the  ocean.  The  madreporic  zoophytes  are  invisi- 
ble creatures,  mere  atoms  in  the  kingdom  of  nature, 
and  yet  of  indispensable  utiUty  to  her  machinery. 

These  microscopic  animals  form  and  create  gigan- 
tic polypse.  Each  joins  its  own  minute  work  to  the 
work  of  others— they  secrete  calcareous  atoms,  which 
become  welded  together,  and  increase  so  as  to  form 
archipelagoes,  and  in  time  to  fashion  new  empires 
and  continents. 

Each  one  of  these  little  creatures  has  its  nourish- 
ment. It  extracts  from  a  drop  of  water  the  salt 
necessary  for  its  subsistence.  It  draws  from  the 
sea  the  calcareous  matter  which  it  requires ;  it 
snatches  from  the  waves  solid  matter  which  they  hold 
in  solution.  It  changes  thus  the  weight  of  the  water, 
causing  its  specific  gravity  to  vary.  The  water, 
which  thus  becomes  lighter,  is  then  set  in  motion 
by  the  pressure  of  the  molecules  that  surround  it., 
Each  tiny  being,  a  mere  atom,  gives  individuaUy  but 
a  very  feeble  impetus  ;  but  the  force  of  animalculai 


THE   OCEAN  41 

is  rendered  irresistible  by  their  formidable  union. 
''  Combined  action,"  sajs  St.  Simon,  "  multiplies  the 
product  an  hundred  fold."  And  these  zoophytes 
prove  the  truth  of  the  remark  by  the  enormous  re- 
sults which  they  achieve. 

"  How  are  we  to  set  down  in  figures,"  says  Maury, 
"  the  quantity  of  solid  matter  thus  daily  extracted 
from  the  sea  ?  Does  it  amount  to  tens  of  thousands, 
or  thousands  of  millions  of  tons  ?  This  is  a  question 
impossible  to  answer,  but  whatever  the  amount  may 
be,  the  effect  produced  on  the  motion  of  the  water 
is  immediate,  and  we  see  that  a  species  of  animal, 
devoid  of  locomotion,  the  life  of  which  is  scarcely 
distinguishable  from  that  of  a  plant,  seems  more  or 
less  to  be  endowed  with  the  power  of  shaking  the 
entire  mass  of  the  ocean  from  the  poles  to  the  equa- 
tor." 

Thus  these  streams  of  the  sea,  whose  track  is  fol- 
lowed by  navigators  in  the  midst  of  the  vast  Pacific, 
these  currents  whose  source  is  still  largely  involved 
in  as  much  mystery  as  their  final  issue — these  hid- 
den arteries  within  the  bosom  of  Ocean — this  circu- 
lation, so  irresistible,  so  vast,  so  terrible  in  its  im- 
mensity, is  set  in  motion  by  the  heat  of  the  sun, 
which  evaporates  the  upper  waves  of  the  sea — by 
the  excess  of  salt  which  is  the  result  of  that  evapo- 
ration— and  by  these  imperceptible  beings  which 
are  incessantly  at  work  in  the  ocean's  depths — these 
living  atoms,  which,  adjusting  the  balance  of  the 
universe,  may  be  termed  the  compensators  of  the 
ocean. 


CHAPTER  III. 

DESTRUCTION  AND  CREATION. 

"Tiie  ocean  is  at  once  the  coflan  and  the  cradle  of  the  earth."— BKRNARi>i» 
DE  St.  Piebke, 

THE  STRUGGLE  OF  WATER  WITH  LAND. 

The  waves  undermine  rocky  shores,  cut,  hew  and 
shape  stones,  waste  and  wear  away,  continents  ;  they 
dash  against  the  feet  of  lofty  cUffs,  and  daily  encroach 
upon  their  bosom  by  the  landslips  which  they  cause. 
Sometimes  they  divide  and  excavate  rocks,  thus  giv- 
ing birth  to  fantastic  constructions,  bearing  the  im- 
press of  a  style  altogether  indescribable,  a  grotesque 
order  of  architecture,  which  creates  bluffs,  capes, 
breakers  and  reefs.  Let  us  quote  a  passage  from  a 
great  poet  who  paints  in  magic  colors  the  spectacle 
offered  by  this  sea-built  architecture. 

"  These  structures,"  says  Victor  Hugo,  "possess 
the  entangled  forms  of  the  polyp,  the  sublimity  of 
the  cathedral,  the  extravagance  of  the  pagoda,  the 
massiveness  of  the  mountain,  the  delicacy  of  the  gem 
and  the  horror  of  the  sepulchre.  An  extraordinary 
system  of  dynamics  here  presents  problems  happily 
solved.  Frightful  cliffs  tottle  over  our  heads,  but  they 
do  not  fall.      It  is  impossible  to  say  what  sustains 


THE   OCEAN.  43 

these  giddy  structures.  Everywhere  are  seen  over- 
hangiug  masses  which  seem  top-heavy,  enormous 
gaps,  structures  which  appear  suspended  in  mid-ai  r 
contrary  to  every  principle  of  mechanics.  This 
Tower  of  Babel  seems  to  have  escaped  from  the  do- 
minion of  law  ;  rocks  heaped  together  pell-mell  com- 
pose a  monster  monument.  There  is  no  logic,  and 
yet  a  vast  equihbrium.  It  is  more  than  solidity  ;  it 
is  eternity.  Nothing  thrills  the  mind  more  than  the 
contemplation  of  this  strange  architecture,  always 
ready  to  totter  and  yet  always  standing.  Every- 
thing assists  in  its  erection  and  everything  opposes 
it.  It  is  a  combat  of  lines,  which  results  in  an  edi- 
fice. Nothing  is  comprehensible  here  but  the  fact 
that  all  this  is  the  result  of  an  antagonism  of  two 
forces :  the  ocean  and  the  hurricane." 

The  traditions  of  maritime  countries  present  to  us 
numberless  examples  of  the  ravages  and  sudden 
changes  to  which  their  shores  have  been  subject  by 
the  action  of  the  sea.  We  find  striking  proofs  of 
this  in  the  formation  of  the  Zuyder  Zee,  the  Bies- 
Boch,  etc.,  in  the  exceptional  tides  which  have  al- 
together altered  the  aspect  of  the  islands  lying  be- 
tween the  Texel  and  the  mouths  of  the  Elbe,  and 
have  indented  the  winding,  shores  of  the  Cattegat, 
and  fashioned  the  recesses  of  the  Lymfiord.  Bays, 
gulfs,  and  capes  have  been  at  different  times  pro- 
duced under  the  potent  influence  of  the  tempest, 
and  are  still  produced  by  the  play  of  the  waves, 
which  are  now  heaping  up  banks  of  sand  and 
pebbles  on  the  sea  shore,  and  now  destroying  their 
own  creations,  causing  the  dykes  and  the  ram])art 


44  WATER. 

to  disappear,  to  which  they  theinstlvcs  have  given 
birth. 

The  action  of  the  waves  is  not  merely  exerted 
over  a  shifting  soil,  but  is  felt  by  the  hardest  and 
most  solid  rocks.  The  more  abrupt  and  resistant 
the  shore,  the  more  it  suffers  from  the  irresistible 
element.  Nothing  is  sufficiently  strong  to  resist  the 
army  of  waves,  and  the  land  always  succumbs  in  its 
contests  with  the  sea.  It  only  triumphs  when  it 
avoids  a  battle,  as  Fabius  did  with  Hannibal.  If  it 
offers  to  the  sea  a  flat  and  imiform  seaboard,  the 
waves  advance  gently  up  to  the  shore  and  their 
wrath  is  appeased.  Before  an  enemy  who  attempts 
no  resistance  they  lose  their  impetuous  force  and 
quietly  deposit  on  the  shingle  round  stones  and  fine 
sand — creatmg  more  than  they  destroy. 

The  natural  configuration  of  coasts  is  favorable 
to  the  action  of  the  waves,  when  the  stratifications 
of  the  soil  offer  to  the  sea  layers  and  leaflets,  the 
lowest  of  which;  continually  attacked  by  the  liquid 
element,  everlastingly  shaken  by  the  reiterated 
shocks  of  the  waves,  are  hollowed  out  all  the  quicker 
the  more  easily  the  material  can  be  disintegrated^ 
The  upper  layers  advance  menacingly  and  form 
frowning  prominences,  but  it  is  not  long  before  they 
also  disappear  and  precipitate  themselves  into  the 
ocean. 

Of  all  the  shores  beaten  by  the  tempest  there  are 
none  which  present  a  more  imposing  appearance  or 
give  a  more  vivid  idea  of  the  power  of  the  waves 
than  the  fiords  of  Northern  Europe  and  of  America. 
These  fiords  are  deep  bays,  long  and  narrow,  leav- 


THE  OCEAN. 


45 


ing  between  them  vast  rocky  peninsulas.  One  might 
call  them  an  enormous  fringe,  of  which  every  thread 
is  a  peninsula  denticulated  and  opening  into  minia- 
ture bays,  canals,  and  straits.     So  lofty  is  the  es^ 


i 


Action  of  Waves  on  Eocks. 


carpment  of  these  coasts,  that  Mount  Thorsnuten, 
situated  to  the  south  of  Bergen,  attains  at  a  mile's 
distance  from  the  shore  a  height  of  nearly  5,000  feet. 
In  a  great  number  of  these  bays,  cascades  and 
waterfalls   descend  from  the  summits  of   the  cliffs 


46  WATER. 

and  rush  into  space,  forming  on  their  way  parabohis, 
beneath  which  b!^.rks  and  fishing-boats  have  free 
room  to  pass. 

During  seven  centuries  the  waters  of  the  Enghsh 
Channel  have  advanced  over  4,000  feet  over  the  land, 
and  the  cHffs  upon  its  shores  have  consequently 
moved  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  league  since  the  time 
when  Peter  the  Hermit  preached  the  first  crusade. 
The  Straits  of  Dover  enlarge  day  by  day,  and  accord- 
ing to  Mr.  Thome  de  Gamond,  the  sea  gains  on  the 
chffs  of  Gris-Nez  at  the  rate  of  75  feet  a  year !  If 
in  years  gone  by  the  encroachments  have  not  been 
more  rapid,  it  must  have  been  60,000  years  since 
France  and  England  were  separated  by  the  piercing 
of  the  isthmus  which  once  united  them. 

Many  coasts  and  whole  islands  are  surrounded  by 
a  wall  of  gigantic  blocks  of  stone,  the  remains  of 
former  masses  of  rock  which  the  waters  have  under- 
mined and' destroyed ;  in  other  places  colossal  rocks, 
shaped  like  huge  pyramids  or  immense  mile-posts, 
stand  solitary  in  the  midst  of  foaming  water,  or  the 
waves  have  forced  a  passage  through  lofty  rock- 
walls  and  formed  gates  fit  for  giants.  Like  causes 
have  produced  the  far-famed  caves  of  Ireland  and 
Scotland  in  volcanic  basalt,  and  those  of  Syracuse 
in  Sicily.  England,  especially,  is  still  the  scene  of 
the  fierce  destructive  power  of  the  ocean.  On  the 
coast  of  Scotland,  submarine  forests  are  seen  be- 
neath the  waves,  and  boats  are  now  floating  where 
a  geneiation  ago  large  herds  of  cattle  were  grazing 
peacefully;  a  vast  lake,  the  Zuyder-Zee,  was  sud- 
denly formed  by  a  single  effort  of  the  sea  in  1225, 


THE   OGEAN.  47 

and  recovered  from  its  tyrannical  grasp  only  a  few 
years  ago ;  Heligoland  and  the  islands  on  the  coast 
of  Schleswig  disappear  inch  by  inch,  but  without  a 
day's  respite,  and  who  knows  how  few  ages  may 
have  passed  since  the  Channel  was  land  and  Eng- 
land a  peninsula  of  France  ? 

We  have  already  remarked  that  the  dip  of  the 
rocks  opposed  or  assisted  the  action  of  the  waves  ; 
but  the  hardness  of  the  rocks  and  their  chemical 
composition  also  con^^iol  the  changes  which  they  are 
made  to  undergo.  The  friction  of  the  waves  is  occa- 
sionally strong  enough  to  cause  a  rise  in  the  temper- 
ature sufficient  to  produce  absolute  combustion,  and 
it  has  often  been  observed  at  Valencia,  that  the 
chffs  appear  to  smoke,  like  a  streak  of  incandes- 
cent lava,  consumed  bv  slow  combustion.  The 
chffs  do  not  resist  the  efforts  of  the  ocean  mere- 
ly by  the  hardness  of  their  material,  they  often 
take  the  precaution  of  clothing  their  bases  in 
armor  by  way  of  defence  against  the  repeated  at- 
tacks of  their  enemy.  An  abundance  of  vegetation 
of  algae  and  seaweeds  carpet  every  fissure  of  the 
rocks  hke  a  fantastic  suit  of  hair ;  these  plants  di- 
vide the  waves  into  thin  threads  of  water,  into  fila- 
ments of  foam.  Elsewhere  heaps  of  moUusks  and 
other  shells  form  a  more  solid  coat  of  mail,  a 
thick  and  impervious  buckler  against  which  the 
tides  beat  in  vain. 

Other  coasts  are  not  thus  protected,  and  conse- 
quently wear  away  without  offering  any  resistance. 
Enormous  blocks  are  detached  from  the  upper  por- 
tions ;  they  are  broken  by  the  shock  of  their  fall  and 


48  WATER. 

aie  soon  swept  away  by  the  waves^  which  retire,  as 
if  wishing  to  take  a  new  start  before  recommencing 
the  attack.  They  break  up  into  small  fragments 
and  divide  into  pebbles,  and  the  heaps  thus  raised 
afterwards  protect  the  rocks  to  which  they  once  be- 
longed, and  produce  the  shelving  banks  which  put  a 
stop  to  the  conquests  of  the  sea.  One  might  look 
upon  them  as  so  many  corpses  heaped  pell-mell 
round  the  fortress,  whence  the  enemy  has  succeeded 
in  tearing  them. 

Upon  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean,  near  Yin- 
timille,  and  also  upon  the  coast  of  Brittany,  there 
are  everywhere  masses  of  ruins  of  this  description 
to  be  seen,  which  resist  the  efforts  of  the  waves. 

In  one  word,  everywhere  we  find  the  sea  busy 
lev^ellingthe  coast ;  it  breaks  down  the  haughty  pro- 
montories which  encroach  upon  its  limits  and  de- 
posits their  dust  at  the  bottom  of  its  vast  empire. 


IIEPRODUOTIVE  EFFECTS. 

Nothing  is  lost,  nothing  is  created  anew.  If  the 
labor  of  the  waves  was  merely  destructive,  it  would, 
be  followed  by  a  complete  annihilation  of  continents : 
but  the  sea  repairs  the  ravages  which  it  has  caused, 
and  lessens  the  disasters  to  which  it  has  given  birth. 
The  waves  hammer  and  pound  the  rocks  on  the  sea 
shore,  but  the  ruins  thus  made  are  not  lost ;  they 
are  carried  to  other  places  where  they  form  sedi- 
ments upon  sediments.  The  quantity  of  solid  mat- 
ter held  in  solution  by  the  currents  of  the  tide  is  so 


|\J)ki^^*\'«ii?W*\>11'>l|)fe;f:!|l|||^^^^^^^^^^^^ 


THE   OCEAN  49 

considerable,  that  in  order  to  raise  the  level  of  the 
soil  in  certain  districts,  the  water  carried  up  by  the 
tide  is  kept  there  for  some  time.  Thus,  by  fre- 
quently repeating  this  operation,  the  vast  estates^ 
which  border  on  the  Delta  of  the  Humber  have  beer 
raised  nearly  six  feet.  The  tides  fill  up  in  the  same 
way  the  cavities  and  hollow  places  which  corrugate 
the  bottom  of  the  ocean,  by  means  of  the  sediment 
which  they  discharge  into  them  age  after  age. 

At  the  upper  end  of  the  Eed  Sea,  it  has  been  re- 
marked that  the  Isthmus  of  Suez  has  increased  in 
size  with  extraordinary  rapidity,  owing  to  oceanic  de- 
posits. This  Isthmus,  as  we  are  told  by  Sir  Charles 
Lyell,  has  doubled  in  width  since  the  time  of  Herodo- 
tus. At  that  period  the  town  of  Hieropolis  stood  on 
the  seashore ;  in  our  days  it  is  as  far  from  the  Red  Sea 
as  from  the  Mediterranean,  being  situated  exactly  in 
the  middle  of  the  Isthmus.  In  1541  Soliman  II, 
found  in  the  port  of  Suez  a  valuable  harbor  of  refuge, 
capable  of  giving  shelter  to  his  entire  fleet ;  now  an 
immense  bank  of  sand  has  replaced  the  canals  which 
sheltered  his  vessels.  During  1800  years  the  terri- 
tory of  Tehama,  situated  on  the  Arabian  Gulf,  has 
received  from  the  sea  a  tribute  of  two  leagues  of 
soil  in  sediment,  which  has  gradually  accumulated 
during  this  time.  If  we  penetrate  further  from  the 
shore  into  the  land,  we  find  at  a  certain  distance 
from  the  existing  sea  ports  the  ruins  of  ancient 
towns  which  flourished  long  ago  under  the  same 
names,  and  the  remains  of  their  walls,  once  washed 
by  the  sea,  present  now  an  obstacle  to  the  encroach- 
ments of  the  desert  sands. 


50  WATER. 

One  part  of  the  Delta  of  the  Nile  is  day  by  day 
diminished  in  size  by  a  powerful  current  of  the 
Mediterranean,  and  the  waves,  which  follow  one 
another  in  unceasing  assaults,  carry  to  a  consider- 
able distance  the  valuable  sediment  brought  down 
by  the  earthy  stream.  They  transport  this  solid 
matter  as  far  as  the  shores  of  Syria. 

Mr.  Girard,  one  of  the  most  illustrious  scientific 
men,  who,  at  the  time  of  the  French  expedition  into 
Egypt,  was  commissioned  to  investigate  the  remains 
of  the  Canal  of  Amron,  is  of  opinion  that  the  whole 
Isthmus  of  Su(^z  is  of  oceanic  formation,  and  consid- 
ers it  as  a  vast  dam  constructed  by  marine  currents. 
Although  this  opinion  is  open  to  objections,  it  is  none 
the  less  certain  that  that  Isthmus,  now  world-famous 
from  the  works  which  have  been  so  successfully 
achieved  there  by  one  of  the  ablest  intellects  of  mod- 
ern times,  constantly  increases  in  width  in  conse- 
quence of  the  continual  augmentation  of  the  deposits, 
which  are  forever  accumulating  on  the  shores  of  the 
Mediterranean. 

Examples  of  this  description  abound.  The  shores 
:>i  Guiana  increase  and  gain  upon  the  dominion  of 
Ocean,  as  in  other  parts  of  the  world  the  sea  inun- 
dates and  invades  the  land.  It  isj  as  Lockhead  in- 
forms us  in  the  "Edinburgh  Transactions,"  the  Gulf 
Stream  which  brings  to  those  countries  the  sedi- 
ment borne  away  from  the  Delta  of  the  Amazon. 

The  transport  of  these  earthy  materials  to  far  dis- 
tant countries  by  the  waters  need  be  no  matter  of 
astonishment  to  us,  for  it  can  be  easily  explained  by 
the  state  of  extreme  subdivision  to  which  the  solid 


•  THE   OCEAN.  51 

substance  becomes  reduced.  Fine  emery  powder  will 
remain  for  a  long  time  in  suspension  in  water,  and 
takes  more  than  an  hour  to  settle  in  a  moderate 
sized  vessel.  It  is  inferred  from  this  that  if  the  ma- 
rine currents  carry  with  great  velocity  to  the  surface 
of  the  ocean  an  extremely  fine  earthy  dust,  and  if 
this  dust  sinks  very  slowly  to  the  bottom  of  the  fluid, 
it  may  be  carried  to  a  very  great  distance  before 
reaching  the  bottom  of  the  ocean.  If  a  sediment  as 
fine  as  emery  powder  can  be  carried  along  by  the 
Gulf  Stream,  which  travels  at  the  rate  of  a  league  an 
hour,  this  sediment  wiU  have  drifted  2,200  feet  in 
28  hours,  whereas  during  the  period  it  will  only 
have  sunk  into  the  bosom  of  the  current  to  the 
depth  of  224  fathoms. 

Thus  the  sea  which  "wears  away  our  continents 
with  so  much  violence  does  not  merely  carry  on  a 
a  work  of  destruction,  but,  after  having  tormented 
the  land  with  its  rtithless  blows,  after  having  in- 
vaded its  shores,  it  transports  the  sediment  to  other 
coasts,  thus  compensating  for  the  wounds  which  it  has 
inflicted,  closing  them  with  the  same  hands  which  had 
caused  them.  But  the  land  itseK  is,  by  some  strange 
power  of  its  own,  capable  of  opposing  a  vigorous 
defence  to  the  action  of  the  waves,  by  a  mysterious, 
gentle  motion  with  which  it  is  endowed.  The  sub- 
terranean fires  which  have  corrugated  the  terrestrial 
epidermis  are  far  from  being  extinct,  and  every  day 
earthquakes  and  other  convulsions  spread  terror 
over  some  country.  But  tLese  abrupt  movements, 
these  tempests  in  the  realms  of  Pluto,  are  the  excep- 
tions, even  as  the  hurricane  is  exception  to  the  rule 


62  WATEK. 

which  directs  the  movements  of  the  ocean.  During 
an  earthquake  the  sea  loses  all  at  once  its  surface 
equilibrium ;  it  becomes  subject  to  terrible  oscilla- 
tions, and  its  waters  invade  the  continents,  where 
thej  produce  formidable  eruptions,  and  often  remain 
in  the  countries  which  they  have  inundated.  The  his- 
tory of  the  Greek  Archipelagoes  and  the  Islands  of 
Japan  are  replete  with  such  disasters.  But  subterra- 
nean fires  seldom  work  in  a  manner  so  violent ;  they 
usually  lift  up  the  earth  gently  and  raise  it  insensibly. 
The  hand  of  a  clock  appears  immovable,  yet  it 
travels  in  one  hour  sixty  divisions  of  the  dial ;  it  is 
the  same  with  the  shores  of  many  continents  ;  under 
the  influence  of  an  invisible  spring  they  slowly  per- 
form an  upward  and  regular  movement,  and  thus 
drive  back  the  waters  of  the  ocean. 

Numerous  writers  explain  certain  phenomena  of 
the  sea  by  saying  that  the  water  has  retired,  that  it 
has  abandoned  its  bed,  that  the  immovable  shores 
have  seen  their  empire  extended  through  the  flight 
of  the  liquid  elements,  whereas  exactly  the  contrary 
has  really  happened.  The  level  of  the  sea  is  im- 
movable, but  we  are  deceived  by  its  appearance. 
The  water,  always  agitated  on  its  surface,  seems  the 
very  image  of  instability,  whereas  it  is  endowed  with 
remarkable  permanency,  and  the  earth,  according 
to  PUny  the  emblem  of  immobiHty,  is,  on  the  con- 
trary, endowed  with  motion.  The  ocean  never  re- 
treats from  the  shore.  It  is  chased  thence  by  the 
shore,  which  is  itself  continually  rising. 

The  ocean  does  not  slowly  invade  certain  coasts  ; 
it  arrives  there  by  a  forcible  advance,  to   which  it 


THE   OCEAN.  53 

is  compelled  by  the  slow  lowering  of  its  shores  be- 
neath its  own  level.  Let  us  take  care  not  to  rely  too 
much  on  the  testimony  of  our  senses,  but  to  view 
facts  with  the  eye  of  reason,  and  we  shall  then  find 
that  many  ideas  are  not  less  real  and  incontestable, 
because  they  are  contrary  to  generally  received  opin- 
ions. The  laws  of  hydrostatics  teach  us  that  what 
we  term  the  sea  level  is  nothing  else  than  a  surface  of 
equilibrium  determined  by  the  forces  of  attraction 
exercised  by  the  soHd  over  the  liquid  portions  of  the 
globe.  It  is  impossible  for  any  part  of  this  sur- 
face to  occupy  a  fixed  and  invariable  position,  unless 
all  the  other  points  preserve  theirs  as  well ;  it  is 
equally  impossible  for  the  waters  to  rise  or  to  fall 
in  any  place  in  a  continued  manner,  unless  all  the 
other  parts  rise  or  fall  in  their  turn  and  become  sub- 
ject to  corresponding  changes  of  levels. 

Now  we  are  acquainted  with  a  great  number  of 
places  in  which  the  sea  has  not  been  subject  to  the 
shghtest  change  since  the  commencement  of  our 
history.  Its  general  surface  has  not  changed  the 
stability  of  the  liquid  level,  which  covers  almost  en- 
tirely the  surface  of  the  globe,  appears  a  positive 
fact,  the  most  incontestable  that  can  be  brought  for- 
ward, because  it  has  sustained  the  ordeal  of  a  long 
succession  of  ages. 

How  otherwise  can  it  be  accounted  for  that  from 
1822  to  1837  the  sea  has  abandoned  the  shores  of 
Chili  (as  it  appeared  to  the  inhabitants  of  these 
countries)  and  that  no  variations  should  have  been 
felt  on  the  neighboring  coasts  of  Peru  and  Califor- 
nia?    These  apparently  contradictory   facts  would 


54  WATER. 

iarnish  a  complete  reputation  to  the  most  certain 
laws  of  hydrostatics.  How  is  it  conceivable  that  the 
sea  should  have  risen  in  the  lower  part  of  the  Ara- 
bian Gulf,  in  the  Straits  of  Messina,  and  on  the  coast 
of  Portugal,  while  it  remained  immovable  in  the  ad- 
jacent parts  of  the  ocean  ?  Instead  of  praising  the 
immutability  of  the  earth,  it  would  be  more  correct 
to  speak  of  that  of  the  sea,  and  we  must  learn  to 
understand  that  the  level  of  the  ocean  is  unchang- 
able,  while  the  solid  surface  of  our  planet  is  suscep- 
tible of  elevation,  of  depression,  and  of  every  kind  of 
modification. 

An  error  existed  here,  very  similar  to  that  which 
during  so  many  centuries  fostered  the  idea  of  the 
immutability  of  the  earth.  Our  eyes  still  show  us 
the  sun  revolving  round  our  planet,  but  science  has 
taught  us  that  our  own  microscopically  small  globe 
performs  its  daily  journey  around  the  central  fire 
which  warms  it  and  describes  an  ellipsis  which  it 
never  ceases  tracing. 

Like  all  truths,  that  which  we  announce  here  re- 
mained long  unsuspected,  and  the  sinking  of  the  level 
of  the  sea  was  the  opinion  of  all  the  older  naturalists. 
In  1731  the  Academy  of  Upsala  resolved  to  verify 
the  important  fact,  and  to  try  carefully  all  the  exper- 
iments which  could  solve  the  problem.  Notches 
were  cut  at  high  water  mark  on  rocks  waslied  by  the 
Baltic  Sea,  and  some  years  after,  it  was  ascertained 
that  these  marks  had  risen  several  centimetres  above 
the  surface  of  the  sea.  Thus  it  was  proved  that  the 
level  of  the  Baltic  had  considerably  sunk,  but  these 
conclusions  met  with  strong  opposition,  and  fresh 


THE   OCEAN.  55 

experiments  were  tried.  The  ultimate  result  arrived 
at  from  all  these  experiments  was  that  on  various 
parts  of  the  same  sea  the  level  of  the  water  was  sub- 
ject to  an  apparent  depression  more  or  less  sensible 
on  different  shores,  and  that  in  other  parts  (the 
coast  of  Scania)  it  rose,  on  the  contrary,  very  percep- 
tibly, because  the  notches  cut  on  the  rocks  at  high 
water  mark  were  here  found  to  have  disappeared 
beneath  the  surface  of  the  sea. 

It  is  impossible  to  reconcile  these  enormous  dif- 
ferences at  so  little  distance  from  each  other,  because 
it  cannot  be  supposed  that  the  level  of  the  ocean, 
far  from  being  entirely  on  the  same  horizontal  plane, 
should  form  an  undulating  surface.  It  is  evident 
from  these  experiments  that  the  level  of  the  Baltic 
has  not  varied  more  than  the  level  of  all  other  seas ; 
but  that  in  Finland  and  some  parts  of  Sweden  the 
soil  of  the  earth  has  risen  little  by  Uttle,  and  is  gradu- 
ally elevating  itself  without  having  received  any  per- 
ceptible shock,  while  the  southern  coast  of  the  same 
peninsula  sustains  corresponding  depressions. 

The  shores  of  Greenland  have  been  gradually 
sinking  during  the  last  four  centuries,  over  a  space 
of  nearly  600  feet.  They  become  thus  gradually 
submerged  by  the  ocean,  and  some  ancient  nautical 
erections  are  already  swallowed  up  in  this  manner. 

The  Temple  of  Serapis,  on  the  slope  of  Puteoli,  is 
another  striking  instance  of  the  movement  of  the 
soil.  The  Temple,  built  in  a  florid  style  of  architec- 
ture, was  certainly  not  originally  erected  upon  the 
margin  of  the  sea,  where  its  columns  would  have 
been  incessantly  washed  by  the  waves,  and  yet  it  is 


56  WATEIt. 

now  found  standing  on  the  very  edge  of  the  shore 
The  three  columns,  which  alone  remain,  present,  at  a 
height  of  nine  feet  above  their  base,  a  zone  perfor- 
ated by  shell-fish,  which  attacked  the  stone  when  it 
was  sunk  in  the  depths  of.  the  sea.  Thus  this  temple, 
built  upon  a  site  completely  sheltered  from  the 
waves,  was  afterwards  plunged  nine  feet  below  the 
water,  and  has  again  been  raised  above  the  level  of 
the  sea  by  the  oscillations  of  the  soil. 

Many  are  the  islands  of  the  Indian  Ocean  which 
have  risen  up  from  the  seas,  and  which  are  now 
slowly  returning  thither  by  means  of  a  gradual  de- 
pression, whilst  other  volcanic  islands  rise  above  the 
surface  of  the  waste  of  ocean  like  the  immense  back 
of  some  gigantic  sea  monster. 

In  our  own  days  the  unexpected  apparition  of  the 
volcanic  islands,  which  surged  out  of  the  waves  in 
the  midst  of  the  Greek  Archipelago,  seems  to  warn 
us  that  the  forces  of  nature  allow  themselves  no  pro- 
longed repose,  and  that  the  subterranean  fires  which 
long  ago  corrugated  the  terrestrial  pellicle  and  fur- 
rowed it  with  scars  and  wrinkles,  are  stUl  active  be- 
neath our  feet. 

This  strife  of  the  elements,  this  combat  between 
fire  and  water,  materially  alters  day  by  day  the  ap- 
pearance of  this,  our  earth. 


II. 

THE  SYSTEM  OF  CIRCULATION, 


"  An  incessant  evaporation  carries  water  from  the  seas  to  the  surface  oi 
continents.  Pure  when  it  came  from  the  sea,  the  rain  returns  it  charged  witb 
SAiiue  matter  derived  from  the  soil."— H.  Mabie-Davt. 


CHAPTER  I. 


WATER   ON   ITS  TRAVELS. 


"  What  can  be  more  admirable  than  to  see  the  waters  traversing  the  skiee 
(migi-are  per  ccelum),  and  return  to  the  earth  in  the  form  of  rain  to  quicken 
and  revive  the  plants,  give  birth  to  fruits  and  grains,  and  noixrish  trees  and 
vegetables.  "—Pliny. 

The  navigator  who  leaves  Europe  in  order  to 
cross  the  Atlantic,  sees  an  entire  change  in  all  the 
aspects  of  Nature  as  he  approaches  the  equator. 
Thick  clouds  obscure  the  sky  ;  continued  rains 
darken  the  air.  The  sombre  atmosphere  of  these 
strange  regions  inspires  him  with  feelings  of  melan- 
choly and  of  fear  ;  but  without  this  curtain  of  vapor 
to  oppose  a  barrier  against  the  burning  rays  of  the 
sun  he  would  be  overpowered  by  the  intolerable 
Jieat.  A  mass  of  similar  clouds  surrounds  our  whole 
globe,  forming  a  dusky  ring,  which  may  appear  to 
the  inhabitants  of  other  planets  like  the  rings  of 
Saturn.  The  stormy  seas  on  the  line  were  formerly 
the  terror  of  sailors,  and  these  masses  of  vapor 
caused  a  sense  of  dread  in  the  minds  of  those  who 
ventured  into  these  remote  regions.  And  yet  the 
thick  cloud  which  thus  hangs  forever  over  the  waves 
is  really  the  safety  of  the  earth,  and  that  which,  in 


60  WATER. 

other  countries,  procures  for  us  the  charm  of  an 
azure  sky  and  the  deh'ght  of  a  beautiful  sun.  This 
band  of  clouds  is  the  great  regulator  of  temperature 
over  our  globe ;  it  is  the  real  source  of  the  rivers 
which  water  our  fields,  the  floating  reservoir  from 
which  comes  all  the  water  that  refreshes  and  revives 
our  continents. 

By  a  physical  law,  obscure  in  theory  but  clear 
and  precise  in  its  results,  every  mass  of  water  sur- 
rounded by  air  perpetually  exhales  into  that  air  a 
quantity  of  vapor,  the  volume  of  which  is  always  in 
proportion  to  the  height  of  the  temperature  of  the 
water.  It  may  be  conceived,  therefore,  how,  under 
the  influence  of  the  burning  tropical  sun  and  the 
heat  its  rays  produce,  the  seas  of  the  torrid  zone 
continually  give  out  an  enormous  amount  of  vapor  ; 
a  thin  mist  ascends  incessantly  from  the  liquid  sur- 
face, and,  lighter  than  the  air,  it  rises  and  gives 
birth  to  the  black  and  sombre  streamers  which  ob- 
scure the  equatorial  atmosphere.  As  soon  as  these 
clouds  have  reached  the  highest  regions  of  the  air, 
where  the  temperature  is  sufficiently  low,  they  re- 
turn in  part  to  their  liquid  state  and  again  fall  -into 
the  sea  in  the  shape  of  rain  ;  but  the  uncondensed 
vapor,  in  consequence  of  its  lightness,  produces  in 
the  higher  strata  of  the  atmosphere,  currents  which 
flow  towards  the  poles. 

These  currents  transport  it  to  our  own  regions, 
where  it  dissolves  in  rain,  or  condenses  in  the  form 
of  snow,  as  it  meets  the  ice-covered  summits  of  lofty 
mountains. 

Thus  a  great  distillation  is  at  work  all  over  tlie 


THE   SYSTEM  OP   CIRCULATION.  61 

surface  of  the  globe,  the  burniug  rays  of  the  tropical 
sun  acting  as  the  furnace  which  heats  this  gigantic 
alembic.  The  equatorial  ocean  is  the  boiler  of  this 
immense  engine,  the  higher  regions  of  the  air  fur- 
nish its  cap  ;  the  cold  atmosphere,  the  icy  summits 
of  the  mountains  of  the  north,  the  frozen  seas  of  the 
poles  form  the  refrigerators;  the  streams,  the  water 
courses,  the  rivers,  and  the  lakes  are  the  receivers, 
incessantly  filled  with  enormous  volumes  of  water 
which  they  return  to  the  sea.  This  distillation  is 
forever  beginning  anew ;  the  water  of  the  receiver 
being  always  sent  back  again  into  the  boiler  to  be 
submitted  to  a  new  process  of  distillation. 

This  majestic  stream  which  pours  into  the  sea 
has  received  its  transparent  fluid  from  the  ocean 
itself.  The  pure  and  beneficent  water  from  the 
crystal  spring  is  none  other  than  the  salt  water  of 
the  sea  purified  in  this  great  laboratory  of  nature. 
It  came,  no  doubt,  originally,  from  tropical  regions, 
accomplishing  its  joarney  under  the  form  of  light 
vapor ;  but  after  its  metamorphosis  into  rain  it  came 
down  again  to  the  earth  and  dwelt  there  for  a  time. 
It  quenches  the  thirst  of  all  who  live  near  it;  it 
causes  the  grass  to  grow  that  carpets  its  margin ; 
and  whe|i  its  mission  is  accomplished  it  will  flow  off 
on  the  current  of  a  stream  and  return  to  its  birth- 
place— the  great  ocean. 

The  sea  has  been  aptly  compared  to  a  miser  in- 
cessantly bent  upon  adding  to  his  hoard.  It  does 
not  restore  what  it  has  stolen  during  shipwrecks, 
and  if  it  lends  to  the  earth  the  water  on  which  de- 
pends the  development  of  all  life,  it  is  only  to  exact 


62  WATER, 

afterwaitls  a  fuller  payment  of  tbe  loan.  Even 
drop  returns  to  the  vast  reservoir ;  the  very  breath 
which  escapes  from  our  mouth  only  rises  into  the 
air  to  condense  into  a  drop  of  water,  which  the 
sea  will  ultimately  absorb. 

In  thus  travelling  across  the  earth  and  through 
space,  water  is  also  commissioned  to  distribute  heat 
over  the  globe,  and  to  modify  the  temperature  of 
different  climates.  When  it  escapes  first  from  the 
equatorial  seas  it  has  been  heated  in  the  furnace  of 
a  burning  sun ;  it  stores  up  the  heat,  it  carries  it 
along  with  it  and  distributes  it  over  colder  countries. 
Under  the  form  of  rain  it  softens  the  climate  of 
northern  regions,  and  gives  to  every  animated  being 
that  vital  warmth  of  which  the  sun  is  so  lavish 
under  the  tropics,  and  of  which  he  shows  himself 
such  a  miser  in  countries  nearer  to  the  poles. 

Before  it  passes  off  again  in  the  form  of  large 
streams,  water  traverses  continents,  penetrates  into 
the  tiny  channels  which  are  formed  for  it  by  fissures 
in  the  soil,  percolates  into  porous  ground,  glides 
through  cracks  in  stones,  sucks  its  way  through  . 
interstices  of  flints  and  pebbles,  creeps  between  the 
roots  of  plants  and  rises  up  in  the  stems,  insinuates 
itself  into  the  cellular  system,  dissolves  and  takes 
away  from  the  soil  the  mineral  materials  which  it 
meets  with  on  its  course,  and  conveys  them  to  living 
beings  who  assimilate  them  to  their  own  substance. 
At  times  it  unites  itself  to  minerals  and  makes  its 
abode  in  substances,  in  combination  with  which  is 
forms  hydrates ;  at  other  times  it  rests  immovable 
in  marshes,  laboring  hard  in  decomposing  organic 


THE   SYSTEM   OF  CIRCULATION.  63 

matter,  presiding  over  the  putrifaction  and  decom- 
position of  reeds,  weeds,  and  trees,  which  form 
peat  and  turf. 

It  seldom  remains  stationary  long ;  and  afte/ 
having,  in  a  liquid  state,  traversed  the  bodies  oi 
animals,  or  the  stalks  of  vegetables,  it  is  exhaled 
again  and  rises  as  vapor ;  thus  it  escapes  once  more 
and  returns  to  the  atmosphere,  which  it  will  again 
quit  in  the  form  of  rain,  hail,  or  snow,  to  commence 
anew  its  everlasting  round. 

Like  a  tender,  ever  watchful  mother,  water  inces- 
santly bestows  its  benefit  upon  every  part  of  man's 
vast  domain.  Beneath  his  feet,  in  the  dark  bosom 
of  the  earth,  unseen  and  unheard,  it  flows  through 
countless  veins  and  arteries,  or  gathers  its  tribute 
from  a  thousand  sources  in  gigantic  basins  and 
lakes, — the  "  sealed  fountains  of  the  deep,"  as  Holy 
Writ  graphically  calls  them.  Or  it  greets  the  bright 
light  of  day,  and  flows,  a  beneficent  stream,  through 
the  lands  and  cities  of  man,  joyously  going  to  meet 
the  great  ocean;  or,  modestly  hiding  its  gifts,  it 
opens  a  tiny  spring  on  Alpine  heights,  to  slake  the 
chamois'  thirst  and  to  refresh  the  tiny  moss. 

And  wherever  this  omnipresent  element  appears 
it  assumes  new  shapes  and  new  forms  of  beauty.  A 
marvellous  Proteus,  it  evaporates  under  a  warm 
breath  into  mist  and  vapor,  and  weaves  faint  blue 
images  on  the  horizon  ;  or  it  rises  on  high  to  deco- 
rate the  skies  with  their  varied  panoply  of  clouds,  if 
cruel  cold  does  not  force  it  to  harden  into  hail  or 
ice,  or  to  divide  into  stars  of  matchless  beauty,  as 
virgin  snow.     But    whatever    its  shape,  the    deep 


t>4  WATER. 

poetry  of  water  is  never  lost.  If  clouds  and  mists 
l?ad  our  imagination  astray  to  weave  a  thousand 
fancies  out  of  their  ever-changing,  fantastic  forms, 
snow,  with  its  chaste  whiteness,  its  gentle,  dream- 
like fall,  and  its  sudden  disappearance,  suggests  to 
us  dreams  of  perfect  peace  and  fairy  bliss.  How 
terrible,  on  the  contrary,  and  yet  how  imposing,  the 
hail  storm  that  suddenly  rises,  dark  and  dismal,  on 
the  clear  blue  sky,  and  mercilessly  destroys  the  rich 
harvests  on  golden  fields,  not  sparing  even  the  giant 
trees  of  the  forest.  Ice,  again,  chills  us  by  more 
than  physical  cold  ;  and  yet  the  mystery  charms  us 
irresistibly  as  we  glide  over  the  cracking,  thunder- 
ing surface  of  lake  or  river,  and  think  of  the  mighty 
spirit  under  our  feet,  held  captive. by  fierce  frost,  but 
ready  to  awaken  at  the  first  gleam  of  sunshine,  and 
with  irresistible  wrath  to  cast  off  its  hateful  fetters. 
Hence  it  was  no  mere  idle  dream  of  the  ancients, 
when  they  represented  the  hoary  god  of  waters 
under  the  ever- changing  form  of  Proteus,  who  ap- 
peared to  the  weak  and  the  ignorant  in  a  thousand 
l3dng  shapes,  and  only  to  the  wise  and  the  strong — 
for  knowledge  then  already  was  power — revealed 
both  his  real  nature  and  his  most  valuable  secrets. 
For,  a  true  Proteus,  water  is  still,  even  to  the  mind 
of  our  day,  omnipresent  in  appearance  and  yet  ever 
escaping — to-day  a  sweet  image  of  calm  peace,  to- 
morrow raging  in  wild  fury  and  swallowing  goods 
not  only,  and  gigantic  vessels,  the  triumph  of  human 
skill,  but  covering  provinces  with  its  terrible  waves, 
and  hiding  forever  whole  cities  and  blooming  lands 
in    its  dark,   unfathomable   bosom.     The  traveller 


THE   SYSTEM   OP  CIRCULATION.  66 

moves  with  marvellous  speed  by  the  aid  of  water, 
compelled  to  labor  as  steam ;  he  greets  it  with  joy- 
ful gratitude  under  the  dark  shade  of  the  orange- 
tree  or  the  palm  in  the  Orient,  and  amazes  the  cre- 
dulous son  of  the  East  by  accounts  of  the  huge  ice- 
bergs of  the  Pole,  and  the  bridges  built  by  the  fro- 
zen fluid  from  country  to  country.  Ever  within 
reach,  it  ever  eludes  our  grasp  ;  and  without  rest, 
and  without  ceasing,  it  races  onward  in  its  eternal 
course  around  the  globe.  The  merry  spring  rushes 
with  youthful  haste  through  the  narrow  valley  into 
the  broad  plain  ;  a  mighty  stream,  it  rolls  its  gigan- 
tic waves  into  the  great  ocean,  and  with  it  rushes 
daily  around  the  whole  of  the  earth.  As  fairy  va- 
por it  rises  high  up  to  heaven,  and  in  sportive  play, 
chasing  cloud  after  cloud,  it  repeats  its  course,  until 
it  returns  once  more  to  the  earth  as  gentle  rain  or 
grateful  dew,  filling  every  spring  and  every  goblet 
held  up  by  a  thousand  tender  leaves  and  beauteous 
flowers. 

Solid,  hquid,  and  gaseous,  these  are  the  three 
forms  under  which  it  appears.  Water,  vapor,  and 
ice— these  are  the  three  appearances  which  it  as- 
sumes. It  never  leaves  one  but  to  take  the  other. 
It  quits  the  ocean  to  irrigate  the  dry  land.  It  de- 
serts the  continents  to  return  to  the  realms  of  the 
waves ;  it  flies  through  space,  creeps  upon  the 
ground,  and  flows  within  the  sea.  Trusting  itself 
to  the  light  breeze,  or  to  the  gentle  slope  which  it 
happens  to  find,  it  obeys  whatever  agents  may  com- 
mand it.  It  penetrates  into  the  crevices  of  the 
earth,  warms  itself  in  their  depths,  and  bursts  out 


6^  WATER. 

again  from  them,  boiling  and  impetuous.  It  wears 
away  and  polishes  the  rocks  over  which  it  falls  ;  it 
transports  from  one  country  to  another  the  minute 
seed  of  a  plant  and  the  egg  of  an  insect ;  it  carries 
away  trees  and  stones  along  the  bed  of  the  torrent ; 
it  heaps  up  sand  and  pebbles  on  the  shore,  and 
undermines  the  earth  which  it  oftentimes  causes  to 
cave  in  all  of  a  sudden. 

The  poets  have  often  looked  upon  water  as  the 
emblem  of  inconstancy  and  mobility.  The  fluid 
part  of  the  globe  is  indeed  subject  to  constant  agi- 
tation ;  if  it  be  on  a  declivity  its  weight  carries  it 
along  with  a  speed  commensurate  with  the  incline 
of  the  ground  on  which  it  happens  .to  flow;  and  thus 
originates  the  torrent,  the  stream,  the  river.  If  it  is 
in  a  basin,  closed  in  on  all  sides  hke  the  sea  or  a 
lake,  it  is  rocked  by  the  action  of  the  wind,  and 
thus  originates  the  wave  and  the  current.  The  as- 
sault of  the  waves,  which  rush  up  to  the  shore  to  die 
away  there ;  the  miniature  cataracts  formed  by  a 
brook  which  ripples  between  stones,  present  to  us 
the  appearance  of  free  and  independent  motion ; 
and  yet  in  this  liquid  element,  so  capricious  in  ap- 
pearance, there  dwells  the  most  admirable  regularity. 
The  circulation  of  the  water  around  and  over  the 
earth  obeys  a  mechanism  as  regular  as  that  of  the 
circulation  of '  the  blood  in  our  bodies.  Its  passage 
through  stream  and  river  resembles  that  of  the 
blood  in  our  veins ;  and  the  transformation  of  salt 
into  fresh  water  may  be  compared  to  the  constant 
changes  of  our  arterial  and  venous  blo9d.  What 
can  be  grander,  and  at  the  same  time  simpler,  than 


THE   SYSTEM   OF   CIRCULATION.  ^T 

the  jouinej  of  a  drop  of  water,  which,  exhaled  from 
the  ocean,  traverses  the  atmosphere  and  falls  back 
agam  to  the  earth  in  a  raindrop  ?  After  having 
drawn,  both  from  the  air  and  the  soil,  the  food  re- 
quired by  all  living  creatures,  after  having  given  life 
to  all  on  its  way,  it  returns  to  the  sea  and  at  once 
commences  anew  its  beneficent  round. 

If  we  cast  our  eyes  on  the  immense  forests  of  the 
New  World,  we  see  hovering  above  the  green 
branches  a  thin  floating  mist.  That  cloud  is  the 
messenger  of  life,  which  traverses  the  air,  clears 
space,  and  hastens  to  water  and  refresh  the  flowers 
and  fruits  of  Europe. 

Marvellous  and  sublime  harmony !  The  earth 
borrows  from  the  sea  the  materials  to  form  its 
streams  and  its  rivers,  and  the  continents  fraternally 
interchange  forever  the  source  of  all  life  and  fertili- 
ty :  "  Yerily,  all  the  rivers  run  into  the  sea  ;  yet 
the  sea  is  not  full :  unto  the  places  from  whence  the 
rivers  come,  thither  they  return  again." 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE   WATER   IN  THE   ATMOSRHERE. 

"  A  portion  of  the  heat  of  the  tropics  is  carried  towards  the  poles   by  &a 
aerial  messenger,  and  it  is  thus  ever  equalizing  the  earth's  heat." 

Tyndall. 

THE  VAPOK  OF  WATER 

The  ail,  even  when  it  is  pure,  transparent  and 
azure,  is  nothing  but  an  immense  reservoir  of  vapor, 
it  is  a  vast  gaseous  sea  without  Hmit  or  shore,  which 
covers  the  earth  on  all  sides  to  a  certain  distance, 
and  beneath  its  benign  shelter  live  mankind,  ani- 
mals and  plants. 

The  surface  of  the  sea,  as  we  have  already  re- 
marked, emits  constantly  into  the  air  a  vapor  indis- 
pensable to  the  needs  of  life  :  a  drier  air  we  should 
not  be  able  to  inhale ;  it  would  parch  up  the  lungs, 
injure  plants  and  animals,  and  produce  the  bad 
effects  which  we  know  to  result  from  the  Simoom  of 
the  Desert.  But  a  too  dam[)  air  also  has  its  disad- 
vantages, and  every  one  has  heard  of  the  malaria 
of  certain  warm  and  ill-drained  localities. 

Visible  clouds  and  fogs  are  frequently  confounded 
with  the  vapor  of  water,  but  that  is  a  grave  error. 


THE   SYSTEM  OF   CIRCULATION.  69 

This  vapor  is  an  impalpable  gas  which  the  atmos- 
phere, in  combmation  with  the  waters  of  the  sea,  is 
constantly  generating.  Its  presence  in  the  air  is 
constant,  but  it  is  to  be  met  with  in  greater  or 
lesser  proportions.  It  exists,  moreover,  usually  in 
almost  infinitesimal  quantities,  seldom  forming  more 
than  one  half  of  one  per  cent,  of  the  whole  mass, 
and  yet  it  is  incredible  how  much  this  slight  admix- 
ture of  watery  vapor  affects  the  meteorological 
phenomena  of  the  globe.  It  exercises  an  enormous 
influence  on  terrestrial  revolutions,  and,  to  use  the 
words  of  Tyndall,  "  if  we  were  to  say  that  in  Eng- 
land on  a  day  of  ordinary  moisture  the  atmospheric 
vapors  exercised  an  activity  an  hundred  times 
greater  than  that  of  the  air  itself,  we  should  speak 
within  the  truth." 

It  is  the  faculty  of  absorption  which  secures 
such  power  to  this  vapor.  The  surface  of  the  earth 
is  apt  to  lose  by  radiation  the  heat  which  it  has  ab- 
sorbed ;  but  the  aqueous  vapors  contained  in  the  air 
take  up  that  heat,  warm  themselves  by  it,  and  cover 
the  earth  with  a  warmth,  securing  it  against  a  cold 
which  would  be  fatal  to  every  hving  creature. 
Wherever  the  air  is  very  dry,  (it  is  never  completely 
so,)  we  are  subject  to  great  extremes  of  tempera- 
ture. In  the  day  time  the  rays  of  the  sun  reach  the 
surface  of  the  earth  without  meeting  any  great  ob- 
stacle on  their  way,  warm  it,  and  produce  a  high  de- 
gree of  heat.  In  the  night  the  earth  radiates  this 
heat  back  again  to  the  sky,  and  the  result  is  an  ex- 
treme low  temparature.  In  the  steppes  of  India,  on 
the  table  lands  of  Himalaya,  on  the  plains  of  Aus- 


70  WATER. 

tralia,  in  every  country  where  the  cUrnate  is  vei'p 
dry,  excessive  heat  during  the  day  alternates  with 
a  bitter  cold  at  night.  In  the  midst  of  the  Sahara 
the  rays  of  the  sun  so  raise  the  temperature  of  the 
ground  that  it  is  unpleasant  to  place  the  hand  upon 
it,  while  at  midnight  the  cold  is  so  intense,  that  wa- 
ter, if  it  could  be  found  in  so  varied  a  climate,  would 
freeze.  This  difference  of  the  temperature  arises 
from  the  fact  that  the  air,  deprived  of  vapor,  cannot 
retain  its  caloric.  The  vapor  of  water  is  a  genuine 
transparent  covering,  which  may  be  compared  to 
the  burnous  of  the  Arab  ;  it  partially  intercepts 
the  rays  of  the  sun  and  prevents  their  acting  with 
too  great  force  upon  the  globe,  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  after  the  sun  has  set  it  does  not  permit  the 
heat  absorbed  by  the  soil  to  be  lost  again  by  radi- 
ation and  thus  preserves  all  animated  nature  from 
cold. 

It  may  be  objected  that  this  vapory  mantle  which 
preserves  us  from  cold  must  at  the  same  time  pre- 
vent the  solar  rays  from  reaching  us.  This  is  not 
altogether  true.  The  vapor  of  water  is  a  screen 
which  arrests  the  earth's  own  heat,  but  allows  the 
heat  of  the  sun  to  pass ;  for  the  dark  rays  em  anting 
from  the  earth  differ  from  the  luminous  rays  de- 
rived from  the  sun,  and  hence,  it  absorbs  the  former 
in  much  greater  abundance  than  the  latter.  Thus 
a  pane  of  glass  permits  the  light  to  pass  freely,  but 
it  partly  arrests  the  heat  which  accompanies  it — in 
the  same  manner  the  vapor  of  water  interrupts  the 
dark  rays,  whilst  it  gives  free  passage  to  the  lumin- 
ous rays,  and  its  absorbent  power  is  especially  ex- 


THE   SYSTEM   OF   CIRCULATION.  71 

ei-cised  on  the  heat  which  is  emitted  bj  the  sun. 
In  consequence  of  this  admirable  and  marvellous 
arrangement,  the  average  temperature  of  our  globe 
is  higher  than  would  be  the  case  if  we  depended 
solely  upon  the  sun  without  the  protection  of  watery 
vapors. 

FOGS. 

Nothing  is  easier  than  to  deprive  the  air  of  the 
water  which  it  contains  ;  it  is  only  necessary  to  cool 
it  in  order  to  condense  its  vapor  as  in  the  refrigera- 
tor of  a  distilhng  apparatus.  A  decanter  of  cold 
water  placed  in  a  warm  room  will  become  covered 
with  beads  of  vapor,  a  cloud  of  dew  which  settles 
upon  it.  So  it  is  in  nature.  When  the  temperature 
of  a  body  of  air  sinks  rapidly  in  consequence  of  the 
disappearance  of  the  sun  below  the  horizon,  a  mo- 
ment arrives  in  which  the  air  becomes  condensed 
into  drops  of  extreme  minuteness  called  vesicles. 
Our  breath  produces  in  cold  weather  a  visible  cloud, 
the  steam  which  escapes  from  a  railway  engine 
gives  birth  to  a  series  of  similar  globular  vesicles. 
It  is  in  this  manner  that,  from  an  iniBnity  of  small 
invisible  spheres,  which  resemble  miniature  soap- 
bubbles,  fogs  and  clouds  are  formed.  Natural- 
ists are  not  agreed  as  to  the  nature  of  these  vesicles. 
Some  see  in  them  little  balloons  inflated  by  watery 
vapor.  While,  according  to  others,  they  are  little 
spheres  of  watery  vapor  without  any  interior  cavi- 
ties. 

Fogs  have  often  been  looked  upon  as  the  cause 
of  certain  maladies  and.  as  exercising  an  influence 


72  WATER. 

inimical  to  health  ;  it  is  certainly  evident  that  mist 
is  the  indication  of  a  superabundance  of  moisture  in 
the  atmosphere,  and  that  it  is  usually  formed  in  the 
midst  of  a  stagnant  body  of  air,  in  which  the  smoke 
and  impurities  arising  from  below  are  readily  accu- 
mulated. Great  evil  sometimes  result  from  this, 
and  in  marshy  countries  it  is  by  no  means  unusual 
to  see  frequent  fogs  accompanied  by  fever  among 
those  exposed  to  their  influence. 


CLOUDS. 
Clouds  are  fogs  situated  at  a  certain  distance  above 
the  earth  ;  between  cloud  and  mist  the  chief  differ- 
ence is  that  of  position.  There  are,  however,  clouds 
consisting,  not  of  vesicles  but  of  small  needles  of 
ice.  The  clouds  have  a  perfect  mobility,  and  their 
classification  is  almost  impossible,  though  Howard 
and  other  meteorologists  have  tried  to  discover  cer- 
tain leading  types  among  the  forms  which  they  most 
frequently  assume.  Thus  four  kinds  of  clouds  have 
been  classified.  The  cirrus^  the  cumulus,  the  stra- 
tus and  the  nimbus.  We  do  not  insist  upon  these 
classifications,  which  are  of  no  importance,  for  every 
cloud  has  its  particular  form,  and  a  fragment  oi 
vapor  which  detaches  itself  upon  a  blue  sky  is  sub- 
ject to  all  the  caprices  of  the  wind ;  it  fashions  and 
modifies  itself  into  an  infinite  variety  of  shapes. 


CONDENSATION   OF   VAPOE-RAIN,    SNOW    AND    DEW. 

To  make  the  water,  held  in  the  air  in  the  form  of 
vapor,  leave  it,  it  is  sufficient  to  cool  the  ;dr ;  the 


THE   SYSTEM   OF   CIIICULATION. 


73 


well  known  experiment  of  the  iced  decanter  must  be 
carried  out  on  a  large  scale.     Of  all  the  means  by 
which   the   air  may  be  cooled  or   heated,  there  is 
none  more   efficacious  than   to  com- 
press  or  expand  it.      Every  one  has 
seen    the  air  tinder-box.      By  means 
of  a  piston  we  strongly  compress  the 
air  in   a  stout  tube,  and  thus  the  air 
becomes  sufficiently  heated  to  light  a 
piece  of  tinder ;  if  we  then  cautiously 
let   the    air    escape,   it    expands   and 
grows  cold  again.     The  air  which  es- 
capes from   the  lips  when  we  whistle 
would  on  a  very  delicate  thermome- 
ter show  coolness,  because  it  has  been 
compressed  in  the  chest.     The  air  ex- 
haled by  the  open  mouth  has  not  been 
compressed,  consequently  it  does  not 
produce  the  same  effect. 

How  does  nature  compress  the  air 
to  cool  it  and  cause  it  to  abandon  the 
water  in  the  state  of  rain  by  the  con- 
densation of  vapor?  Probably  by 
carrying  it  into  the  higher  regions  of 
the  atmosphere,  where  there  is  less 
pressure.  The  dilated  air  becomes 
cold  and  precipitates  the  vapor  in  the 
form  of  hail,  or  if  the  cooling  process 
be  violent,  of  snow.  If  we  imagine  a 
wind  to  blow  regularly  in  the  direction 
of  a  mountain  or  forest,  the  damp  air  meeting  with  an 
obstacle  does  not  the  less  pursue  its  course.     It  sur- 


Air  tinder-box. 


74  ,  WATER. 

mounts  the  obstacle  and  rises  into  those  regions 
where  the  pressure  is  less,  thus  producing  rain.  It 
has  been  frequently  remarked  that  when  a  current 
of  air  is  directed  against  a  forest,  the  vapor  it  con- 
tains will  condense  in  rain ;  if  the  obstacle  is  in  a 
higher  stratum,  such  as  a  mountain,  the  fall  of  tem- 
perature is  more  considerable,  and  the  water  solidi- 
fies instead,  and  forms  snow  or  hail.  Out  at 
sea  the  same  effect  may  be  produced  by  atmo- 
spheric currents  which  meet  on  their  way  and  dis- 
place considerable  volumes  of  air.  The  primary 
condition  of  the  production  of  rain  is,  therefore,  a 
condensing  of  the  air ;  it  varies  accordmg  to  the  di- 
rection of  the  wind  and  the  changing  level  of  the 
ground.  This  collapsed  mist — for  such  rain  at  first 
really  is — would  of  course  fall  directly  back  into  the 
ocean  in  a  continuous  drizzle  but  for  a  curious  and 
beautiful  provision  of  nature.  When  examined 
through  a  microscope  the  clouds  are  found  to  con- 
sist of  congeries  of  little  bubbles,  resembling  soap- 
bubbles,  so  that  De  Saussure  once,  when  caught  in 
an  Alpine  fog,  saw  these  bubbles  floating  past  him 
as  large  as  peas.  Drifting  along  under  the  influ- 
ence of  the  wind,  they  finally  collapse  into  compact 
drops,  to  be  drawn  down,  by  the  earth's  attraction, 
in  showers  to  the  ground,  whence,  after  having  dis- 
charged their  important  functions,  they  are  again 
raised  into  the  fresh  water  ocean  overhead. 

We  may  conclude  our  remarks  upon  rain  by  add- 
ing that  the  true  causes  of  its  production  and  varia- 
tions in  different  countries  are  at  present  quite  un- 
known.    We  do  not  intend  any  disrespect  to  the  late 


THE   SYSTEM   OF   CIRCULATION.  75 

Mr.  Mathieu  and  his  successors,  but  the  science  of 
meteorology  and  of  predicting  the  weather,  will,  no 
doubt,  one  of  these  days,  reach  a  point  when  it  will 
discover  by  close  investigation,  and  numerous  exper- 
iments, the  laws  which  regulate  the  movements  of 
air  and  the  distribution  of  rain. 

It  is  well  known  that  efforts  are  made  in  almost 
all  civilized  countries  to  measure  the  quantity  of 
rain  falUng  in  a  given  time.  Eain  gauges,  simple 
tin  boxes  of  a  certain  capacity,  with  a  funnel- 
shaped  opening  to  receive  the  rain  and  lead  it  into 
a  lower  box,  enable  us  to  judge  the  amount  fairly, 
while  dew  is  measured  by  bundles  of  wood,  the 
weight  of  which,  when  perfectly  dry,  compared  with 
their  weight  when  saturated  with  dew,  gives  the 
quantity  of  dew  fallen  in  a  given  time.  There  is 
added  to  these  instruments  a  third  vessel,  open  or 
porous,  filled  with  a  certain  quantity  of  water,  care- 
fully weighed ;  after  being  exposed  to  the  air  for  a 
number  of  hours,  the  vessel  and  its  contents  are 
weighed  once  more  and  the  difference  indicates  the 
amount  of  evaporation. 

By  these  means  it  has  been  found  possible  to 
measure  accurately  the  amount  of  rain  which  falls 
in  any  place  during  the  year — in  other  words,  how 
many  inches  of  rain  would  cover  the  ground  if  the 
whole  quantity  had  fallen  at  one  and  the  same  time. 
It  has  thus  been  found  that  the  temperate  zones 
leceive  annually  about  30  inches,  the  tropics  90,  and 
a  few  exceptionable  regions  even  200  inches.  While 
it  hardly  ever  rains  in  Persia,  Arabia,  Central 
Africa,  and  on  the  coast  of  Peru ;  Aracan,  Chiloe 


76  WATER.  ' 

and  our  own  American  northwest  coast  can  boast  ol 
almost  daily  rains,  while  the  Falkland  Islands,  like 
the  polar  regions  and  the  eastern  coast  of  China, 
are  almost  continually  wrapt  in  fogs  and  mists. 
In  certain  places,  as  in  Lombardy,  at  Viviers 
and  Lund,  the  amount  of  rain  seems  to  have 
diminished,  but  at  Marseilles,  Copenhagen  and 
Stockholm,  it  has  increased.  The  next  question 
arising  is  :  How  large  a  proportion  of  this  rain  evap- 
orates, how  much  is  taken  up  by  plants,  and  how 
much  remains  for  rivers  and  water-courses  ?  These 
calculations  have  not  yet  been  brought  to  a  satisfac- 
tory result ;  so  much  only  is  known  that  a  third  oi 
of  the  whole  amount  suffices  to  feed  the  rivers  of  the 
earth.  These  led  also  to  the  remarkable  discovery 
that  rain  does  not  penetrate  loam  beyond  six  inches, 
but  pierces  and  filters  through  rocks  to  an  unfathom- 
able depth. 

This  latter  portion  is,  of  course,  the  origin  of  many 
springs,  some  of  which  are  hence  periodical,  when 
they  depend  exclusively  upon  the  supply  furnished 
by  rains.  In  Germany  such  springs  are  called  May 
springs,  because  they  do  not  begin  to  flow  till  the 
sun  of  spring  has  thawed  sufficient  water  in  the 
upper  mountains  to  fill  them  once  more  after  the 
long  frosts  of  winter.  Some  springs,  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  glaciers,  flow  only  by  day,  others  only  by 
night,  because  the  sun  alone  melts  enough  ice  for 
their  support,  and  the  supply  has  often  so  long  and 
so  hard  a  road  to  travel,  that  it  does  not  reach  the 
outlet  tiU  the  next  morning.  On  the  banks  of  the 
Lake  of  Como,  a  spring  near  the  Villa  Pliniana  flows 


THE   SYSTEM   OF  CIRCULATION.  77 

periodically,  now  fully  and  now  feebly,  as  the  wind 
affects  the  melting  of  the  ice  above. 

The  condensation  of  watery  vapor  does  not  always 
take  place  in  the  great  body  of  air  itself  ;  it  may  be 
produced  on  the  surface  of  bodies  and  on  the  surface 
of  the  soil.  This  phenomenon  takes  the  name  of 
dew  when  the  vapor  condenses  into  water,  or  rivfie 
or  hoarfrost,  when  it  is, deposited  in  a  solid  state. 

It  is  to  Dr.  Wells  that  we  owe  the  true  explana- 
tion of  these  curious  phenomena.  During  the  night 
bodies  become  cold  in  consequence  of  radiation  and 
the  vapor  of  water  condenses  in  proportion  as  the 
air  is  moist  and  the  sky  clear. 


CHAPTEE  III. 

THE  ARTERIAL  SYSTEM  OF  CONTINENTS. 

••  What  beauties,  stern  or  gentle,  with  soft  delight. 
Brooks,  streams  and  rivers,  bring  before  our  sight!"— Deuijl* 

RIVERS. 

We  have  followed  the  drop  of  water  which  we 
saw  escapiDg  from  the  ocean  in  the  form  of  vapor, 
abandon  itself  to  the  breeze,  allow  itself  to  be  rocked 
on  the  ever-moving  air,  and  finally  to  be  condensed 
into  water,  or  ice,  in  the  higher  regions  above  the 
earth's  surface.  Let  us  now  come  and  watch  the 
melting  of  those  eternal  snows  which  crown  the 
mountain  top,  and  the  formation  of  those  thousand 
brooks,  those  countless  tori'ents  which  descend  from 
the  slopes  and  wind  their  way,  serpent-like,  through 
valley  and  plain.  Let  us  follow  these  liquid  veins 
to  the  rivers  with  which  they  at  last  mingle  their 
waters.  Let  us  watch  the  rain  as  it  penetrates  here 
and  there  into  clay  or  flint  soils,  and  gathers  in  other 
localities  in  the  cavities  of  the  earth.  Let  us  be 
present  at  the  birth  of  the  springs,  where  we  see 
a  miniature  stream,  flowing  between  herbs  and 
flowers,  a  crystal  thread,  the  embryo  of  the  great 
river.     Let  us  walk  along  its  banks  and  listen  to 


THE    SYSTEM   OF    CIKCULATION.  79 

its  murmur,  and  we  shall  not  long  doubt  the  pos- 
sibility of  the  little  brook,  now  so  modest  and  so 
slender,  becoming  one  day  an  immense  body  of 
water ; 

*'A  thirsty  giant  at  one  draught  could  drink  it, 
The  green  dwarf  Oberon  '  mid  his  play  could  leap 
From  bank  to  bank  nor  wet  his  garment's  hem." 

So  sings  Hegesippus  Moreau.  But  as  we  follow 
its  course  we  see  tributary  streams  appear,  swelling 
its  waters  and  increasing  its  volume.  Its  banks 
widen  little  by  httle,  its  volume  increases,  and  ere 
long  a  majestic  water-course  fertilizes  rich  and  pop- 
ulous kingdoms. 

What  can  be  more  charming  in  its  perfect  purity 
and  simplicity  than  the  first  origin  of  one  of  these 
rivers !  High  on  the  branches  of  lofty  trees  hang 
dense  mists ;  under  the  cooling  influence  of  their 
grateful  shade  pearl  after  pearl  drops  down,  till 
every  leaf,  every  blade  has  its  precious,  glittering 
jewel  ;  and  drop  after  drop  it  steals,  and  sUps,  and 
glides  into  the  thirsty  soil,  and  meets  others  and 
joins  them  in  great  glee.  No  eye  sees  the  marvel ; 
the  earth  guards  her  mysteries  jealously  ;  but  yon- 
der, where  the  rock  leaves  a  tiny  opening,  a  little 
bed  of  moss  has  formed,  and  in  its  centre  rises  the 
diminutive  spring.  Indefatigably  it  works  its  way 
upward,  and  yet  so  gently  that  no  ear  ever  yet  heard 
its  first  coming.  Eich  grasses  spring  up  to  shelter 
it  from  the  burning  sun,  bushes  and  trees  rise  in 
stateher  form  to  mark  the  birthplace,  and  soon  gath- 
thering  strength  the  tiny  rill  runs  off,  out  into  the 
Jorest,  down  into  the  valley,  off  to  new,  distant  lands. 


80  WATEK. 

And  as  it  runs,  it  grows,  and  ere  we  can  say,  here  it 
begins  or  there  it  begins,  the  river  is  at  our  feet, 
peaceful  herds  are  reflected  in  its  pure  mirror, 
golden  harvests  mimic  its  gentle  waves,  trees  creep  up 
to  its  banks  and  place  their  sentinels  on  many  a 
bluff  and  cliff,  and  yonder,  in  a  sheltered  bay,  a  little 
mill  moves  merrily  under  the  new  impulse,  or  a  rich 
city  rises  on  its  banks,  with  lofty  houses  and  stately 
cathedrals. 

For  the  sources  of  many  of  the  greatest  rivers  on 
earth  are  of  most  modest  dimensions  ;  the  rivers 
Apurimac  and  Camisia,  in  Peru,  and  the  Rhone  in 
the  Alps,  are  striking  examples.  In  other  cases, 
however,  and  especially  in  limestone  regions,  rivers 
start,  as  it  were,  fullgrown  from  the  place  of  their 
birth.  Of  these  the  Sorgue,  which  has  its  origin 
in  the  famous  spring  of  Vaucluse,  is  perhaps  the 
most  interesting.  The  source  forms  a  square  pool, 
150  feet  long  and  90  feet  wide,  deep  sunk  in  a  lime- 
stone rock,  so  that  the  walls  rise  bare  and  perpen- 
dicular like  a  huge  fortress.  The  basin  below  is 
filled  with  pure  crystal  water,  supplied  by  snowy- 
white,  foaming  springs  on  the  right  and  the  left 
hand  ;  one  of  these  measures  a  foot  in  diameter 
where  it  breaks  out  of  the  live  rock.  A  rocky  path 
leads  on  the  left  down  to  the  level  of  the  water ;  half 
way  stands  on  a  little  ledge  a  fig-tree,  which  over- 
shadows the  romantic  spring.  From  here  you  per- 
ceive in  the  right  corner  of  the  basin  a  gigantic 
vaulted  passage,  which  forms  the  entrance  to  an  un- 
fathomable well,  and  in  the  background  opens  a 
vaulted  door  with  a  view  on  a  second  lake.    At  low 


THE    SYSTEM   OF   CIRCULATION.  81 

water  the  basin  is  but  half  filled,  scarcely  three  feet 
deep,  but  when  the  water  rises,  new  springs,  some  of 
which  foam  up  at  the  bottom  of  the  basin,  enormous 
floods,  fill  it  up  to  overflowing,  till  the  waters  boil  up 
furiously  and  pour  like  a  huge  avalanche  into  the 
front  basin,  where  they  soon  cover  the  path,  and  in 
violent  upheavings  reach,  twenty  feet  high,  to  the 
roots  of  the  flg-tree.  Thus  the  Sorgue  presents  the 
rare  spectacle  of  a  river  which  is  navigable  a  few 
feet  from  the  spot  where  its  source  first  breaks  forth 
from  the  bosom  of  the  earth. 

All  limestone  regions,  rich  with  caves,  present 
similar,  though  less  striking  instances,  of  such 
springs,  coming  forth  like  Pallas  Athene,  fully 
armed.  The  Yalley  of  Virginia  is  rich  in  such  rivers, 
and  one,  Lincoln's  Spring,  turns  a  large  mill  not  ten 
feet  from  its  origin,  and  would  bear  boats  of  consid- 
erable size. 

The  chains  of  mountains  trace  for  the  rivers  the 
routes  which  they  must  take.  The  higher  moun- 
tains of  the  world  collect  the  waters  of  the  ocean 
and  pour  them  down  their  sides  back  again  towards 
the  sea.  Our  mountains  are  not  elevations  cast  up 
at  hap-hazard  on  the  earth's  crust ;  on  the  contrary, 
they  form  a  network  symmetrically  designed  accord- 
ing to  a  regular  pattern,  so  that  the  lines  follow  one 
another  with  a  certain  degree  of  precision,  and  the 
whole  framework  is  systematically  arranged.  The 
rivers  which  water  the  great  plains  of  continents 
are,  in  like  manner,  distributed  with  the  same  har- 
mony which  presides  over  all  the  creations  of 
nature. 


S2  WATER. 

Ill  the  contiiients  of  the  Old  World,  the  lower 
chains  of  mountains  take  a  direction  from  west  to 
east, — those  which  extend  from  north  to  south 
being  only  secondary  branches.  The  largest  rivers 
flow  in  the  direction  prescribed  to  them  by  the  ele- 
vations and  depressions  of  the  ground.  The  Eu- 
phrates, the  Persian  Gulf,  the  Yellow  River,  the 
Blue  River,  all  tJie  great  water  systems  of  China, 
travel  from  west  to  east,  and  the  same  holds  good 
with  regard  to  the  chief  arteries  of  all  our  con- 
tinents ;  the  larger  water-courses  of  Africa  and  Asia, 
— the  lakes,  the  Mediterranean  Sea — all  extend 
from  west  to  east,  the  Nile  and  some  rivers  of  Bar- 
bary  forming  the  only  exceptions. 

Our  own  continent  presents  the  same  regularity 
in  the  distribution  of  its  great  Hquid  arteries.  An 
enormous  chain  of  mountains  divides  America  into 
two  great  water  sheds ;  and  all  the  waters  which 
ghde  down  these  immense  slopes  direct  their  course 
towards  the  sea,  in  accordance  with  the  general 
law. 

Such  is  the  general  view,  as  seen  from  a  distance. 
In  examining  this  great  system  of  irrigation  more 
closely,  we  perceive  that  the  rivers  pursue  their 
winding  courses  with  singular  irregularity,  alter- 
nately widening  and  contracting,  following  now  a 
straight  and  now  a  circuitous  path,  describing  a 
thousand  sinuosities,  meandering  leisurely  through 
valleys,  and  then  being  hemmed  in  between  rocks 
and  narrow  channels,  gliding  rapidly  down  sudden 
slopes  or  remaining  almost  stationary  in  level  low- 


THE   SYSTEM   OE  CIllCULATlON.  83. 

lands,  rushing  down  in  rapids,  leaping  in  cataracts, 
or  reposing  in  lakes. 

The  mere  force  of  the  current  of  a  river  is  able  to 
modify  the  aspect  of  its  route.  Below  is  shown  a 
curve  traced  by  a  course  of  water  ;  the  current 
winds  back  as  if  to  retrace  its  steps,  and  the  isthmus, 
a,  constantly  worn  away  by  two  opposing  currents, 


Curve  described  by  a  Stream  of  Water. 

will  no  longer  exist  before  many  years  are  past, 
while  the  peninsula,  i,  will  one  day  become  an 
island. 


LENGTH  AND  DEPTH  OF  RIVERS. 

The  greatest  rivers  of  Europe  are,  the  Volga, 
which  has  a  course  of  2,500  miles ;  the  Danube, 
2,423  ;  the  Don,  995  ;  the  Dnieper,  1,230  ;  and  the 
Vistula  530  miles. 

In  Asia,  the  river  Yang-tse-kiang  travels  over  a 
distance  of  3,000  miles.;  the  Cambodia,  or  Mekong, 


84  WATER. 

describes  a  course  of  over  2,000  miles  ;  and  the 
river  Amoor  2,200  ;  while  the  waters  of  the  Ganges 
pass  over  a  length  of  1,960  miles,  and  the  Euphrates 
nearly  1,780. 

The  Senegal,  in  Africa,  accomplishes  a  journey  of 
3,000  miles,  if  we  include  the  Niger,  which  is  only 
a  continuation  of  the  same  great  river.  The  Nile 
has  a  course  of  about  1,300  miles  in  extent. 

America  has  the  largest  arterial  system  of  any 
part  of  the  world.  The  Mississippi  fertilizes  the 
country  which  it  traverses  to  a  distance  of  about 
4,350  miles,  and  the  superficial  extent  of  its  basin, 
counting  in  its  tributaries,  is  about  1,400,000  square 
miles,  or  more  than  seven  times  that  of  the  whole  of 
France.  The  width  of  the  great  American  river 
varies  from  80  feet  to  1,200  yards,  from  the  fall  of 
St.  Anthony  to  its  confluence  with  the  Illinois  ;  it 
measures  over  a  mile  at  its  confluence  with  the 
Missouri,  and  even  more  at  New  Orleans,  where  it 
joins  the  Arkansas.  Its  depth  is  from  90  to  120 
feet  at  its  confluence  with  the  Ohio,  and  from  100 
to  110  feet  between  New  Orleans  and  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico.  It  travels  at  the  rate  of  two  feet  per 
second,  or  about  33  miles  per  day,  and  during  the 
flood,  in  June,  offers  many  difficulties  to  vessels 
ascending  its  course.  The  river  Orinoco  describes 
a  course  of  575  leagues  in  length,  and  the  river  De 
la  Plata  of  800. 

But  far  more  powerful  yet  is  the  vast  stream  of 
the  Amazon,  which  falls  into  the  waters  of  the 
Atlantic  through  an  immense  estuary,  nearly  150 
miles  in  width.     Everything  is  colossal  about  this 


THE  SYSTEM  OP  CIRCULATION.  85 

river,  which  restores  to  the  sea  all  the  rain  and 
snow  deposited  in  a  basin  of  2,000,000  square  miles. 
So  deep  is  it,  that  a  plummet  of  312  feet  in  length 
cannot  always  fathom  its  abysses  ;  and  so  wide  is  it 
as  to  offer  unobstructed  navigation  to  vessels  for 
three  thousand  miles  of  its  course,  whilst  the  hori- 
zon, touching  its  surface,  hides  its  shores  from  view. 
It  is,  in  point  of  fact,  a  fresh  water  sea,  which  at 
flood  times  discharges  732,000  cubic  feet  of  water, 
moving  24,000  feet,  each  Jiour ;  that  is  to  say,  a 
volume  sufficient  to  supply  3,000  such  rivers  as  the 
Seine,  in  France. 

At  the  time  when  the  snow  melts  in  the  upper 
mountains,  or  when  the  tropical  rains  begin  to  fall, 
some  of  these  gigantic  rivers  increase  still  further 
the  immense  volume  of  their  waters,  and  overflow 
vast  territories.  Others,  again,  dry  up  altogether 
during  the  summer  heat,  as  is  the  case  with  the 
wadis  of  Arabia,  Africa,  and  Persia,  and  some  rivers 
of  New  Holland.  Still  others  are  so  undecided  in 
their  course — the  water-shed  being  too  low — that 
they  branch  off  and  connect  with  tributaries  of 
other  great  streams  ;  the  Amazon  is  thus  united,  by 
bifurcation,  with  the  Orinoco,  and  several  great 
streams  in  Upper  India  form,  by  the  same  means,  a 
perfect  network.  Such  a  division  is,  of  course, 
highly  favorable  to  navigation  and  the  building  of 
canals,  as  has  already  been  shown  in  South  America 
in  the  vast  plains  watered  by  La  Plata  and  the 
Amazon. 

The  most  rapid  rivers  are  the  Tigris,  the  Danube, 
and  the  Indus,  etc.     All  the  great  water-courses  re- 


86  WATER. 

ceive  into  their  channels  a  number  of  rivers,  which 
form  more  or  less  extensive  ramifications  of  the 
main  artery.  The  Danube  receives  into  its  bosom 
about  200  rivers  or  brooks,  the  Volga  33. 

If  the  sea  were  to  become  dry,  it  would  take  the 
rivers  of  the  world  40,000  years  to  fill  its  basin 
once  more. 


SHORES  AND  FLOATING  ISLANDS. 

What  a  variety  of  aspects,  what  a  diversity  of 
features  is  represented  by  the  course  of  all  these 
rivers !  The  blue  or  vermilion  colored  water  of 
some  glide  along  over  a  bed  of  silicon,  others,  on 
the  contrary,  flow  in  yellowish  waves  over  a  slimy 
or  muddy  bed ;  some  meander  over  a  fertile  soil 
and  traverse  hills  enamelled  with  every  description 
of  plants,  while  others  again  dash  over  sharp  rocks, 
or  languish  amidst  the  sands  of  the  desert.  In  tem- 
perate zones  it  is  the  fresh  and  flowery  turf,  poplars 
and  willows  which  seek  the  waterside  and  sink  their 
roots  deep  in  the  moist  soil.  In  Africa,  the  grace- 
ful foliage  of  the  palm  trees  overshadows  the  sur- 
face of  the  rivers,  as  in  the  immense  valley  of  the 
NUe ;  while  the  gigantic  baobab  darkens  the  wa- 
ters of  the  Zambesi  and  other  rivers.  In  tropical 
regions  a  luxuriant  and  entangled  vegetation  covers 
the  banks  of  rivers,  and  dense  copses  of  trees  raise 
their  lofty  tops  from  amidst  a  confused  mass  of 
vegetable  growths,  their  foliage  towering  high 
above  the  thick  reeds  and  the  water-plants  with 
their  gigantic  leaves,  while  lianas  and  other  creep- 


TABLE  OF  COMPARATIVE   LENGTH  OF  PRINCI  PAL  RIVERS. 


.^inUCiuuiVAj^v^^  C6ledOr 

^/ fCftrAi^/"  (  Cevcnncs  ) 
rnaiieaii  •cT'^^  >, 

!   Adriatic  W— ..^   A/'F#«n 

Atlaulii     _     ,  - 

,1  J£i^£M:&Lc/    SudclkMiB. 

Iti*.  Sea  |i:!2iii^«<^/67c«/jt«  I  Silesia  ) 

DonlTSO 


Nolc:  T?/**  liiiythsnre  ifldiccitcU 
in  fftlvitit'ires. 


Hills  of  Wolkonsld 
l*f  ol  U«;BlackrorcHt 

Platinuof  \yaldui  "^ 


AFRICA 


Rocky  Mts. 


_  S^.'^PuranaiBrai.ih 
_^    .»A' 7i*/«Ao  (  Australiim  Alps )     '   |.   !  \' ,    ('I 
I'lli  ,  fe?«^'"''^«/w  OCEANIC  A 


TABLE   OK    COMPAIIVTIVK    LENGTH   OK    RTVERS 


■I  «  .VI  I'l  u 
/,  1  I'l  S\  (^  ^i  ) .»  k  '0 


THE   SYSTEM   OF   CIRCULATION.  87 

ing  plants  weave  in  the  midst  of  this  living  laby- 
rinth a  thousand  graceful  garlands.  The  decayed 
trunks  sink  down  between  the  living,  but  so  dense 
is  the  vegetation  that  they  cannot  reach  the  ground, 
but  are  suspended  in  the  air  by  a  thousand  stems 
and  tendrils,  forming  a  thick  undergrowth,  upheld 
by  a  thousand  bands  which  entwine  the  living  with 
the  dead.  The  fecundity  of  nature  appears  here  in 
its  full  power  in  the  midst  of  this  exuberant  vegeta- 
tion, which  overflows  in  all  directions.  This  over- 
abundance of  vegetation  causes  in  American  rivers 
a  remarkable  phenomenon,  produced  by  the  accu- 
mulation of  huge  trees.  Native  trees  uprooted  by 
the  force  of  the  wind  or  by  land-slips,  are  swept  off 
by  the  current,  arrested  in  their  course  by  islands, 
shoals  and  other  obstacles,  and  form  new  islands, 
which,  stretching  across  the  river,  become  soon  for- 
midable impediments  to  navigation.  Among  the 
largest  rafts,  as  they  are  called,  of  this  kind  we  may 
mention  those  of  a  branch  of  the  Mississippi,  the 
Atchefalaya  or  Red  River,  which  constantly  bears 
along  with  the  current  a  large  quantity  of  wood 
brought  from  the  North.  During  the  last  forty 
years  this  river  has  amassed  such  a  quantity  of  float- 
ing debris  in  one  spot  that  an  enormous  island  has 
been  formed.  In  1816  this  mass  sank  and  rose  as 
the  river  fell  or  rose ;  but  this  did  not  at  all  prevent 
the  growth  of  vegetation  from  covering  it,  as  with 
a  mantle  of  verdure,  and  in  every  autumn  it  was 
gay  with  flowers.  In  1838  the  trees  of  the  float- 
ing island  had  attained  a  height  of  sixty  feet,  and 
at  last  measures  were  taken,  first  by  the  State  of 


88  WATER. 

Louisiana,  and  then  by  the  Federal  Government,  for 
the  destruction  of  this  immense  raft,  which  formed 
an  insurmountable  obstacle  to  navigation.  On  the 
banks  of  the  Red  Eiver,  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Missouri,  the  traveller  often  encounters  accumula- 
tions of  the  same  kind,  and  the  courses  of  these 
rivers  are,  like  that  of  the  Atchefalaya,  encumbered 
with  masses  of  uprooted  trees,  and  the  too  abun- 
dant remains  of  wrecked  vessels.  "  United  by 
the  creeping  plants,"  says  Malte  Brun,  "  and  ce- 
mented by  the  mud  of  the  river,  this  debris  forms 
in  time  floating  islands — young  shrubs  take  root  on 
them,  the  pistia  and  the  water-hly  display  their  yellow 
leaves  ;  serpents,  caymans  and  birds  come  to  make 
their  homes  in  the  midst  of  these  green  and  gay 
rafts,  which  sometimes  are  floated  down  to  the  sea. 
But  here  and  there  a  larger  tree  is  caught  in  a  sand 
bank  and  becomes  stationary;  it  extends  its  branches 
like  so  many  hooks,  from  the  grasp  of  which  the 
floating  islands  cannot  always  disengage  themselves. 
A  single  tree  is  thus  often  sufficient  to  impede  the 
progress  of  a  thousand  others,  and  in  the  course  of 
years  these  spoils  from  far-off  shores  accumulate 
and  give  birth  to  islands,  promontories  and  capes, 
which  at  length  change  the  entire  course  of  the 
river." 


THE  COLORING  OF  RIVER  WATER. 

Nature  seems  to  take  a  delight  in  tinging  the  wa- 
ters of  the  Orinoco  and  other  American  rivers  with 
shades  of  every  hue.    Some  are  blue,  some  green, 


c  <  l>  p  r 


THE   SYSTEM   OP   CIRCULATION.  89 

some  yellow  ;  some  are  brown  as  coffee,  some  black 
as  ink.  The  waters  of  the  Atabapo,  the  banks  of 
which  are  carpeted  with  carolineas,  arborescent 
melastomes,  those  of  the  Temi,  Tuamini  and 
Guainia  are  of  the  color  of  chocolate ;  under  the 
shade  of  the  palm-trees,  Humboldt  says,  they  as- 
sume a  black  tint,  and  when  imprisoned  in  a  trans- 
parent vessel  they  appear  of  a  golden  yellow. 
These  varieties  of  color,  due,  no  doubt,  to  the  dis- 
solving of  organic  matter,  converts  the  water  into  a 
complete  mirror,  and  when  the  sun  has  disappeared 
below  the  horizon,  the  Orinoco  forms  an  opaque 
mass  and  reflects  with  admirable  clearness  the  rays 
of  the  moon  and  the  constellations  of  the  South. 

The  waters  of  the  Orinoco,  like  those  of  the  Nile 
and  many  other  rivers  of  Africa  and  Asia,  transfer 
their  black  color  to  their  banks  and  the  granite 
rocks  which  they  have  washed  for  so  many  centu- 
ries. Hence  the  discoloration  of  rocks  and  cliffs, 
which  rise  amphitheatrically  above  their  shores,  be- 
comes an  unfaihng  evidence  of  their  former  level. 
On  the  banks  of  the  Orinoco,  and  in  the  rocks  of 
Keri,  at  the  mouth  of  the  lao,  cavities  may  be  seen 
painted  black  by  the  action  of  the  river,  and  yet 
these  cavities  are  more  than  150  feet  above  the  pre- 
sent level  of  the  waters.  Their  existence  demon- 
strates a  fact  already  proved  by  other  analogous 
evidence  on  the  beds  of  European  rivers — that  those 
rivers,  which  strike  us  now-a-days  by  their  vastness, 
are,  after  all,  nothing  more  than  the  remains  of  gi- 
gantic bodies  of  water,  which  traversed  our  conti- 


90  WATER. 

aent  in  the  geological  era  before  the  birthday  of 
mankind. 


SUBTEERANEAN  CIECULATION. 

The  torrents  of  rain  which  the  clouds  pour  down 
upon  the  surface  of  our  globe,  do  not  all  return  to 
the  sea,  following  the  tracks  worked  out  for  them 
by  trenches,  furrows,  and  the  beds  of  rivers.  Enor- 
mous quantities  of  water  penetrate  into  the  bosom 
of  the  earth,  percolate  into  stone,  sand  and  clay, 
absorbed  by  porous  rocks,  and  descend  by  their 
gravity  till  at  last  they  find  their  subterranean  voyage 
stopped  by  layers  of  impermeable  substances.  A 
natural  drainage  is  thus  constantly  at  work  under 
the  thin  crust  of  the  earth,  and  the  waters  are  to  be 
found  accumulated  beneath  in  vast  unknown  reser- 
voirs. Streams,  water-courses,  and  even  large  rivers 
sometimes  disappear  suddenly  into  a  bottomless 
gulf ;  swallowed  up  by  yawning  mouths  they  pene- 
trate into  mysterious  ravines  and  escape  into  deep 
and  unexplored  abysses.  The  Guardiana  is  thus 
lost  in  a  flat  country,  in  the  centre  of  an  immense 
prairie,  but  reappears  on  the  surface  of  the  earth 
after  having  traversed  the  subterranean  arch  of  a 
natural  bridge,  under  which,  to  use  the  Spanish 
phrase,  a  hundred  thousand  horned  cattle  could  find 
"  pasture."  The  Meuse  loses  itself  at  Basoilles,  and 
the  Drome  in  Normandy  disappears  suddenly  in  the 
midst  of  a  plain,  in  a  hole  over  thirty  feet  in  diam- 
eter. These  examples  might  be  easily  multipUed, 
and  numberless  instances  might  be  cited  in  which 


THE  SYSTEM  OF  CIRCULATION.  91 

rivers  are  partially  lost,  as  is  the  case  with  the  Rhone. 
According  to  Pliny,  the  Alphano,  in  the  Pelopon- 
nesus, the  Tigris  in  Mesopotamia,  and  the  Tima- 
vius,  in  the  territory  of  Aquilega,  accomplished  the 
most  mysterious  journeys  after  burying  themselves 
under  ground. 

Besides  these  local  infiltrations  there  exist  within 
the  bowels  of  the  earth  liquid  masses  of  another 
nature,  real  currents  and  veritable  subterranean 
rivers.  The  action  of  subterranean  fires  drives  into 
the  cavities  of  volcanic  rocks,  currents  of  water 
which  are  kept  in  motion  by  the  igneous  force. 

Hot  springs  suddenly  spring  out  of  the  ground, 
and  then  again  disappear  as  suddenly  by  the  way 
they  came ;  lakes  cover  square  miles  with  their 
limpid  waters  and  then  leave  them  dry  once  more ; 
masses  of  water  run  off  through  unexpected  openings 
and  fill  the  ground  beneath  with  liquid  streams  in 
all  directions. 

The  most  remarkable  instance  of  such  a  mass  of 
water  varying  in  its  level,  is  to  be  seen  in  a  lake  at 
Zirknitz,  in  Oarniola,  which  extends  in  winter  over 
a  surface  of  six  miles  long  and  three  miles  wide. 
Toward  the  middle  of  summer,  when  the  sun  pierces 
the  earth  with  his  burning  rays,  its  level  sinks  rap- 
idly, and  in  less  than  three  or  four  weeks  its  bed  is 
frequently  completely  dry.  The  water  escapes  by 
means  of  numberless  clefts  and  fissures  in  the  lime- 
stone rock,  which  forms  the  bottom  and  which  at 
that  time  may  be  distinctly  seen.  It  goes  to  supply 
the  neighboring  streams  by  subterraneous  channels 
and  caverns,  and  the  peasants  do  not  hesitate  to  sow 


92  WATER. 

millet  and  buckwheat  where  the  water  was  just  now 
50  feet  deep,  or,  to  reap  the  luxuriant  herbage  which 
springs  up  spontaneously,  they  use  the  sickle  where 
they  previously  employed  a  fishing  net.     When  the 
hay  has  been  got  in  and  the  soil  of  the  lake  has  re- 
warded the  husbandman's  toil  by  a  rich  and  abun- 
dant crop,  the  water  returns  by  the  same  opening 
and  inundates  the  valley,  bringing  back  with  it  the 
fish  that  have  followed  it  in  its  subterranean  wan- 
derings.    Zirknitz  is  in   fact  a  true   subterranean 
lake,  as  migratory  as  a  swallow,  which  in  summer 
buries  itself  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth  and  in  winter 
comes   forth  again  to  fill  its  basin.      Intermittent 
lakes  of  the  same  nature  are  to  be  found  in  France 
and  various  other  countries.     *'  Near  Sable,  in  An- 
jou,"  says  Arago,  "  there  existed  in  1741,  a  spring, 
or  to  speak  more  correctly  a  gulf,  18  to  24  feet  in 
diameter,  usually  known  by  the  name  of  the  bottom- 
less fountain.     It  frequently  overflows,  bringing  with 
it  a  prodigious  quantity  of  fish,  such  as  pike  and 
trout ;  there  is  ground,  therefore,  for  supposing  that 
this  spot  formed  the  vault  of  a  subterranean  lake." 
The  upper  layers  of  stratified  gravel  are  often  found 
to  alternate  with  layers  of  water  at  various  depths. 
It  is  thus  at  St.  Nicholas  d'Alimont,  near  Dieppe, 
where  as  many  as  seven  sheets  of  water  have  been 
counted,  placed  one  upon   another  and  separated 
one  from  the  other  by  solid  layers  of  earth.     In 
1831,  while  an  artesian  well  was  being  dug  at  Tours, 
the  workmen  brought  up  from  the  depth  of  the 
earth  clear  water,  which  contained  branches  of  bri- 
ars, marsh  plants  and  seeds  in  a  state  of  perfect 


THE   SYSTEM   OF   CIKCULATION.  93 

preservation,  proving  decisively  that  tliey  could  not 
have  been  any  length  of  time  beneath  the  water. 
That  these  reservoirs  are  not  merely  the  result  of 
infiltrations,  is  abundantly  proved  by  the  fact  that 
they  frequently  carry  along  with  them  bits  of  wood 
and  shells  which  could  not  have  passed  through  the 
pores  of  the  natural  filters.  The  celebrated  fountain 
of  Nismes  which  discharges  on  an  average  1,000 
quarts  of  water  a  second,  has  often  been  seen  pour- 
ing forth  ten  times  as  much  after  one  of  the  violent 
rains  common  to  that  region.  Moreover,  it  has  been 
observed  that  such  an  exceptional  overflow  often 
occurred  after  heavy  rains  had  fallen  at  a  consider- 
able distance,  a  fact  which  proves  that  water  can 
rapidly  traverse  great  distances,  making  its  way 
through  subterranean  passages. 

While  thus  penetrating  into  the  fissures  of  the 
soil  the  water  becomes  heated  in  its  passage  through 
the  soHd  crust  of  the  earth ;  it  attains  often  quite 
a  high  temperature,  and  reappears  on  the  surface  of 
the  earth  in  a  boiling  condition.  The  thermal 
springs  of  every  description  owe  their  heat  to  such 
an  increase  of  temperature  by  long  subterranean 
wanderings.  On  their  way  they  dissolve  the  rocks 
which  obstruct  their  passage,  the  component  parts 
of  which,  being  united  with  the  water,  form  mineral 
springs  endowed  with  more  or  less  valuable  medici- 
nal qualities.  It  is  thus,  also,  that  Iceland  produces 
those  marvellous  fountains  of  boiling  water  which 
are  known  by  the  name  of  Geysers.  Every  half  hour 
a  heavy  rumbling  sound  announces  the  bubbling  up 
of  the  boiling  liquid.     It  bursts  from  the  ground 


94  WATER. 

with  a  loud  noise,  and  rises  in  an  immense  column 
18  feet  in  diameter,  and  150  feet  liigb.  Presently 
the  column  of  water  vibrates,  it  falls  back  upon  it- 
seK  and  disappears  in  the  mysterious  underground 
opening  from  which  it  arose.  But  again  it  appears 
and  rises  up  on  high  before  the  astonished  gaze  of 
the  traveller  who  penetrates  into  those  wild  regions. 
"The  enormous  quantity  of  water  raised,"  says  Lord 
Dufferin,  "its  violence,  its  latent  power,  the  vast 
masses  of  luminous  vapor,  bursting  forth  with  inex- 
haustible profusion,  all  combine  in  rendering  this 
phenomenon  one  of  the  most  remarkable  freaks  of 
nature."  New  Zealand  in  the  same  manner  presents 
very  striking  instances  ot  boiling  springs.  "All 
round  Lake  Roto  Mahana,"  says  a  recent  traveller — 
Hochstetter,  "  there  rise  from  every  foot  of  ground 
dense  volumes  of  vapor,  and  there  are  more  than  200 
geysers  issuing  from  the  east  side  of  the  boiling  lake. 
The  most  remarkable  of  these  burning  mouths  is 
the  Te-Ta-Eata,  the  principal  outlet  of  that  mass  of 
water  which  has  become  heated  by  contact  with  the 
central  flames  of  our  globe.  The  enormous  column 
of  water  rises  up  in  a  boiling  state  to  the  summit  of 
an  eminence  from  90  to  100  feet,  and  fills  with  one 
jet  an  oval  basin  200  feet  in  circumference,  bordered 
round  its  edges  by  a  snow-white  drapery  of  stalac- 
tites." 

Nor  must  it  be  forgotten  that  we  have  geysers 
quite  as  remarkable  in  size  and  beauty  in  our  own 
country.  The  valley  of  the  Yellowstone,  we  are  told 
by  Governor  Langford,  is  full  of  cascades,  craters  and 
boiling  springs,  there  being  probably  no  other  region 


THE  SYSTEM. OF  CIRCULATION.  '»5 

on  the  globe  where  nature  has  crowded  so  niuch  of 
grandeur  and  majesty  with  so  much  of  novelty  and 
wonder.  A  few  miles  above  the  union  of  the  Fire 
Hole  and  the  Burnt  Hole  River,  there  is  a  large  basin 
filled  with  magnificent  geysers,  twelve  of  which  were 
found  by  the  intrepid  traveller  in  full  action.  Six  of 
these,  from  vents  varying  fi'om  three  to  five  feet 
in  diameter,  threw  water  to  the  height  of  25  feet, 
while  others  threw  columns  of  boiling  water  from 
90  to  120  feet  at  each  discharge,  which  lasted 
from  15  to  20  minutes.  But  others  were  still  more 
magiiificent.  Thus,  on  a  gentle,  incrusted  slope,  a 
large  oval  aperture  was  suddenly  observed,  the  sides 
corrugated  and  covered  with  a  gTeyish-white  sili- 
cious  deposit,  which  was  distinctly  visible  at  the 
depth  of  100  feet  below  the  surface.  "  No  water 
could  be  discovered,"  says  Governor  Langford,  "  but 
we  could  distinctly  hear  it  gurgling  and  boiling  at  a 
great  distance  below.  Suddenly  it  began  to  rise, 
boiling  and  spluttering,  and  sending  out  huge  masses 
of  steam,  causing  a  general  stampede  of  our  com- 
pany, driving  us  some  distance  from  our  point  of  ob- 
servation. When  within  about  forty  feet  of  the  sur- 
face it  became  stationary,  and  we  returned  to  look 
down  upon  it.  It  was  foaming  and  surging  at  a 
terrible  rate,  occasionally  emitting  small  jets  of  hot 
water  nearly  to  the  mouth  of  the  orifice.  All  at  once 
it  seemed  seized  with  a  fearful  spasm,  and  rose  with 
incredible  rapidity,  hardly  affording  us  time  to  flee 
to  a  safe  distance,  when  it  burst  from  the  orifice  with 
terrific  momentum,  rising  in  a  column  the  full  size 


96  WATER. 

of  this  immense  aperture  to  the  height  of  sixty  feet 
and  out  of  the  apex  of  this  vast  aqueous  mass,  fi\  e 
or  six  lesser  jets  or  round  columns  of  water,  vary- 
ing in  size  from  six  to  fifteen  inches  in  diameter, 
were  projected  to  the  marvellous  height  of  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  feet.  These  lesser  jets,  so  much  higher 
than  the  main  column,  and  shooting  through  it, 
doubtless  proceed  from  auxiliary  pipes  leading  into 
the  principal  orifice  near  the  bottom,  where  the  ex- 
plosive force  is  greater.  If  the  theory  that  water  by 
constant  boiling  becomes  explosive  when  freed  from 
air  be  true,  this  theory  rationally  accounts  for  all 
irregularities  in  the  eruptions  of  the  geysers. 

"  This  grand  eruption  continued  for  twenty  min- 
utes, and  was  the  most  magnificent  sight  we  ever 
witnessed.  We  were  standing  on  the  side  of  the 
geyser  nearest  the  sun,  the  gleams  of  which  filled 
the  sparkling  column  of  water  and  spray  with  myri- 
ads of  rainbows,  whose  arches  were  constantly  chang- 
ing,— dipping  and  fluttering  hither  and  thither,  and 
disappearing  only  to  be  succeeded  by  others,  again 
and  again,  amid  the  aqueous  column,  while  the 
minute  globules  into  which  the  spent  jets  were  dif- 
fused, when  falling  sparkled  like  a  shower  of  dia- 
monds, and  around  every  shadow  which  the  denser 
clouds  of  vapor,  interrupting  the  sun's  rays,  cast 
upon  the  column,  could  be  seen  a  luminous  circle 
radiant  with  all  the  colors  of  the  prism,  and  resem- 
bling the  halo  of  glory  represented  in  paintings  as 
encircling  the  head  of  Divinity.  All  that  we  had 
previously  witnessed  seemed  tame  in  comparison 


THE    (_iIAXTE5 


e>    •         *> 


THE   SYSTEM  OF  CIKCULATION.  97 

with  the  perfect  grandeur  and  beauty  of  this  display. 
Two  of  these  wonderful  eruptions  occurred  during 
the  twenty-two  hours  we  remained  in  the  valley. 
This  geyser  we  named  *  The  Giantess.'  " 

*'  Wonders  of  the  Yellowstone  j"  Scribnerfor  June,  1871. 


rn. 


THE    ACTION    OF    WATER    ON 
CONTINENTS. 


«The  waters  seem  incessantly  laboring  to  level  the  inequalities  of  th« 
globe." — Sib  Chakles  Lyelx. 


CHAPTER  I. 


MECHANICAL  AND  PHYSICAL  ACTION. 


"  The  waters  play  a  rery  important  part  in  the  changes  which  are  mada 
apon  the  surface  of  the  globe,  especially  by  the  movement  by  which  they  may 
be  animated."— Beudamt. 


Whilst  travelling  over  the  earth  by  way  of  river 
beds,  lakes  and  basins,  and  subterranean  canals, 
water  is  forever  accomplishing  works  important  and 
innumerable.  Its  destructive  power  is  mainly  shown 
in  the  peculiarity  it  possesses  of  expanding  by  con- 
gelation. Penetrating  into  the  fissures  of  the  hard- 
est and  most  compact  rocks,  it  succeeds  in  breaking 
them  by  the  mechanical  force  which  it  develops  in 
solidifying ;  enormous  blocks  of  stone  are  thus  de- 
tached from  the  mountain-sides,  as  if  a  powerful  and 
irresistible  lever  had  raised  them  for  the  purpose  of 
precipitating  them  into  the  valley  beneath. 

The  solvent  power  of  water  plays  also  a  great 
part  in  the  constant  changes  which  our  earth  under- 
goes ;  the  water  eats  away  the  soil  with  which  it 
comes  in  contact,  by  gently  diluting  the  earthy  mat- 
ter ;  it  penetrates  through  all  fissures,  deprives  the 


10$:  :- 


WATER. 


earthy  particles  of  the  natural  cement  which  binds 
them  together,  and  in  that  way  produces  landslips, 
which  are  often  followed  by  the  most  formidable 
convulsions.  Its  powers  of  transportation  are  still 
more  important;  earthy  matter  being  incessantly 
washed  away  and  carried  along  by  the  running 
water;  stones,  even  rocks,  being  sometimes  carried 
to  a  great  distance.  The  friction  of  the  fragments, 
finally,  borne  along  by  torrents,  operates  like  a  steel 
file,  capable  of  polishing  granite  and  other  hard  sub- 
stances, and  of  producing  enormous  excavations  in 
the  mountains. 

These  multiform  effects,  these  various  works,  are 
often  accomplished  simultaneously,  but  in  order  to 
study  profitably  these  different  actions  of  water,  it  is 
necessary  to  pass  them  in  review  one  after  another. 
We  will  therefore  enter  on  the  subject  methodically, 
keeping  sure  hold  of  the  thread  which  is  to  guide  us, 
so  that  we  need  not  be  afraid  of  losing  ourselves  in 
a  labyrinth  of  facts. 


THE  OUEEENTS— TRANSPORTATION. 

We  may  well  find  matter  of  astonishment  in  the 
facility  with  which  currents,  far  from  rapid  in  their 
course,  transport  heavy  sand  and  gravel.  But  it 
must  be  remembered  that  the  weight  of  a  rock  in 
water  is  not  the  same  as  in  the  air,  for  every  one  has 
noticed  how  much  lighter  he  feels  when  the  body  is 
in  the  water.  Archimedes  made  the  same  curious 
observation  long  before  us,  and  it  led  him  to  the 


R4VINE  OF  OCCOCAMBA. 


cell. 

C      C    C    ,     >  c 

t     Po  a      a 


THE   ACTION   OF   WATER   OM    CONTINENTS.         103 

discovery  of  one  of  the  most  important  principles  in 
hydrostatics. 

Whenever  any  substance  is  plunged  in  water  it 
loses  part  of  its  weight,  equal  to  the  weight  of  the 
volume  of  water  which  it  displaces,  and  as  the  den- 
sity of  a  great  number  of  stones  is  not  more  than 
double  that  of  water,  it  follows  that  substances 
drifted  along  by  a  current  generally  lose  half  of  what 
we  term  their  weight.  The  waters  of  the  majority 
of  rivers  do  not  flow  with  any  great  rapidity,  and 
yet  the  quantity  of  mud  which  they  carry  along  with 
them  is  enormous.  It  has  been  ascertained  that 
the  waters  of  the  Po  hold  in  solution  y^y  of  their 
own  weight  in  soHd  matter,  those  of  the  Rhine  ^hut 
those  of  the  Yellow  River  ■^^.  A  current  which 
flows  at  the  rate  of  two  feet  per  second,  will 
carry  along  with  it  a  large  quantity  of  fine  sand ; 
with  a  speed  of  thirty  inches,  fine  gravel  ;  and 
if  it  has  a  speed  of  three  feet  per  second  it  will 
sweep  along  stones  the  size  of  an  egg. 

From  the  calculations  of  Major  Rennel  it  has 
been  ascertained  that  the  Ganges  pours  into  the  sea, 
at  the  time  when  it  is  at  the  highest  flood,  a  mass 
of  water  weighing  2,850  tons  a  second.  Taking  into 
account  all  the  fine  sand  and  sediment  which  it 
carries  along,  it  has  been  calculated  tiiat  this  river 
must  cast  into  the  ocean  1,300,000,000  cubic  yards 
of  sohd  matter  every  ten  days.  In  ordinary  times, 
when  the  river  is  not  swollen,  this  mass  of  solid 
matter  requires  three  weeks  for  its  discharge.  The 
total  mass  of  deposit  drifted  down  by  the  Gan- 
ges into  the  sea  during  the  space  of  one  year  would^ 


104  WATER. 

according  to  Sir  Charles  Lyell,  exceed  in  weight  42 
of  the  great  pyramids  of  Egypt ;  and  that  carried 
down  during  four  months  of  the  flood  season 
would  be  equal  to  40  pyramids.  The  mind  has  no 
faculties  adequate  to  the  conception  of  the  grand 
scale  on  which  the  river  Ganges  carries  on  its  vast 
transportation.  Looking  on  the  slow  course  of  this 
pow^erful  body  of  water,  watching  it  traverse  ma- 
jestically the  alluvial  plain  through  which  it  flows, 
it  would  be  difficult  to  realize  the  mighty  work  it 
accomplishes.  What  efi'orts  would  be  necessary  on 
the  part  of  man  before  he  could  hope  to  effect  the 
same  end?  It  would  require  from  eighty  to  one 
hundred  vessels  of  the  East  India  Company,  each 
loaded  with  1,400  tons  of  sand  and  mud,  to 
transport  from  the  upper  basin  of  the  Ganges  to  its 
mouth,  a  mass  of  material  equal  to  what  the  great 
river  so  easily  carries  during  the  four  months  when 
it  is  flooded.  If  to  these  labors  of  the  Ganges  be 
added  those  of  all  the  other  rivers,  we  arrive  at 
prodigious  results,  and  see  in  water  a  Titanic  laborer 
that  never  ceases  to  tear  from  our  continents  the 
earthy  materials  of  w^hich  they  are  formed,  and  to 
bear  them  far  away  into  the  realms  of  the  ocean. 
But  rivers  do  not  only  drift  away  mud ;  they  cany 
in  their  waters  various  mineral  substances  held  in 
solution.  The  water  which  falls  upon  the  earth 
dissolves  the  rocks  and  stones  which  it  meets  in  its 
course,  and  confines  in  its  liquid  prison-house  the 
carbonate  of  lime,  gypsum,  salts  of  magnesia,  rock 
salt,  silica,  and  oxide  of  iron,  which  it  takes  from 
the  surface  of  the  earth. 


5    H 


?=      1-3 
"      O 


THE  ACTION  OP  WATER  ON  CONTINENTS.         105 

The  pure  water  of  the  clouds  returns  churged 
with  salts  to  the  sea.  The  result  is,  apparently,  a 
constant  accumulation  of  soluble  materials  in  the 
sea,  and  an  augmentation  of  saltness,  which  might 
be  supposed  to  arrest  the  development  of  life  in  the 
marine  world.  But  all  the  plants  which  grow  upon 
the  seaside,  all  the  seaweeds  which  are  reached  by 
the  tide,  all  the  forests  growing  at  the  bottom  of  the 
ocean,  are  supported  by  absorbing  the  mineral  ele- 
ments of  the  sea,  and  by  assimilating  with  them- 
selves the  salts  which  they  meet  with  there,  a  cir- 
cumstance which  greatly  tends  to  equahze  the  ac- 
tion of  rivers.  The  zoophites  and  mollusks  are,  in 
hke  manner,  nourished  by  the  carbonate  of  hme 
which  the  fresh  water  in  its  course  has  drifted  into 
their  domains,  and  thus  they  change  into  corals, 
madrepores,  and  shells,  the  chalk  chffs  which  for- 
merly covered  our  continients.  "  Is  not  that  spec- 
tacle a  grand  one,"  says  Dumas,  "  which  is  offered 
to  us  by  Nature,  in  the  sublime  simplicity  of  the 
means  which  she  employs?  The  water  of  the 
clouds,  charged  with  the  carbonic  acid  of  the  air, 
falls  upon  our  limestone  hills  ;  it  becomes  charged 
there  with  the  carbonate  of  lime,  which  it  pours  into 
the  bosom  of  rivers.  Carried  onwards  into  the 
ocean,  it  is  soon  drawn  into  regular  currents,  and, 
seized  by  microscopic  animals,  it  adds  one  more 
stone  to  the  new  structures,  which  are  gradually 
prepared  there  for  the  future  empire  of  mankind." 


iOO  WATER. 


TORRENTS  AND  RAPIDS. 

When  water  glides  down  a  steep  declivity,  its 
velocity  and  powers  of  transportation  are  wonder- 
fully augmented,  and  enormous  rocks,  thus  borne 
away,  follow  the  rapid  march  of  rivers  down  the 
sides  of  steep  mountains  ;  streams  precipitate  them- 
selves with  extreme  violence,  chasing  before  them 
blocks  of  stone,  which  frequently  weigh  a  ton  and 
more ;  at  times  they  poise  them  at  hap -hazard  upon 
other  rocks,  and  do  not  carry  them  away  until  after 
a  stoppage  of  longer  or  shorter  duration.  Thus  it 
happens  that  rocks,  whose  first  home  was  on  the 
summit  of  mountains,  are  carried  down  into  the 
valley,  and  thence  into  adjacent  plains.  There  the 
river  breaks  them  up  into  fragments  and  rolls  them 
on  to  the  sea.  Amidst  the  downs  which  characterize 
Northern  shores,  among  the  millions  of  broken  and 
polished  shingle,  there  is,  perhaps,  many  a  pebble 
which  has  come  down  all  the  way  from  the  summit 
of  the  Alps. 

In  the  New  World,  large  rivers  often  precipitate 
themselves  down  the  slopes  with  astonishing  ra- 
pidity. These  rapids  do  not  always  prevent  navi- 
gation, and  the  American  Indians  used  to  venture 
in  their  light  canoes  along  such  rapids,  defying  the 
formidable  obstacle.  The  rapids  of  Montmorenc};, 
in  Canada,  thus  formerly  suffered  the  canoes  of  the 
natives  occasionally  to  glide  down  upon  their  bosom. 

In  a  great  number  of  localities,  such  rivers  ap- 
pear as  torrents  of  mud,  when  clay  and  turf  gradu- 


THE  ACTION  OF  WATEB  ON  CONTINENTS.    107 

ally  sink  to  the  bottom  and  produce  terrible  ravages 
in  their  course. 

The  peat  bogs  of  certain  parts  of  Ireland,  being 
situated  on  an  incline,  thus  sometimes  become 
swollen  after  long,  heavy  rains,  and  gradually  begin 
to  move  as  soon  as  they  have  changed  into  a  sort  of 
soft  and  viscid  paste.  Then  they  ghde  and  shde 
down  rapidly,  notwithstanding  their  muddy  consist- 
ency; their  rapidity  increases  visibly,  and  soon 
they  are  able  to  overcome  every  obstacle.  In  1835, 
after  the  landslip  of  the  Dent  du  Midi,  in  the  Alps, 
an  enormous  mass  of  earthy  debris  formed  a  black 
and  compact  mud,  which  did  not  contain  one  tenth 
part  of  water ;  notwithstanding  which,  it  flowed 
down  into  the  Rhone,  carrying  huge  blocks  of  stone 
into  the  bosom  of  the  river,  causing  the  latter  to 
overflow  the  opposite  bank. 

The  celebrated  mud  torrents  of  Peru  and  Java 
have  often  been  described  by  travellers ;  they  shp 
down  declivities,  and  cover  entire  fields  with  an 
immense  mantle  of  clay. 


FLOATING  ICE. 

In  those  countries  in  which  the  cold  of  winter  is 
sufficiently  intense  to  convert  the  surfaces  of  rivers 
into  ice,  the  power  of  transportation  possessed,  as 
we  have  shown,  by  all  running  water,  is  consider- 
ably augmented.  In  1821,  M.  Lariviere  being  pre- 
sent at  the  breaking  up  of  the  ice  at  Niemen,  on  the 
Baltic,  saw  a  floating  block  of  ice  nearly  30  feet 
long,  carried  down  by  the  current  of  the  river,  and 


108  WATER. 

ran  aground  on  the  bank.  In  the  centre  of  this 
mass  of  sohd  water,  a  block  of  granite,  more  than 
three  feet  in  diameter,  was  discovered.  This  stone, 
resembHng  the  red  granite  of  Finland,  had  thus 
been  transported  on  a  raft  of  ice. 

All  floating  ice  contains  numbers  of  pebbles  and 
fragments  of  stone,  which,  imprisoned  in  a  frozen 
envelope  at  the  moment  when  the  latter  is  formed, 
are  carried  along  until  the  day  when  a  higher  tem- 
perature releases  them  by  melting  the  mold  in  which 
they  are  contained.  It  is  possible  that  the  loosen- 
ing of  rocks  which  are  frozen  on  to  blocks  of  ice, 
may  take  place  even  under  water ;  for  the  weight 
of  the  mass  thus  formed  may  become  sufficient  to 
cause  it  to  sink,  as  has  often  been  seen  in  the  rivers 
of  Siberia. 


WATERFALLS  AND  CASCADES. 

The  numerous  cascades  which  we  meet  in  the 
rivers  of  Europe  and  Asia,  and,  indeed,  of  all  coun- 
tries, afford  us,  beyond  any  other  work  of  nature, 
striking  evidence  of  the  effects  of  water  in  modify- 
ing by  its  inroads  the  shape  of  continents. 

In  our  own  country,  the  Niagara  escapes  from 
Lake  Erie,  cuts  its  way  through  the  soil  with  great 
rapidity,  and  after  a  course  of  34  miles,  precipitates 
itself  into  an  immense  abyss  in  order  to  reach  Lake 
Ontario.  An  island,  situated  on  the  edge  of  the 
Falls,  divides  it  into  two  distinct  sheets  of  water, 
one  producing  the  Horse-shoe,  and  the  other  the 
American  Fall.  The  mass  of  water  precipitates 
itself  into  the  abyss,  while  its  waves  roU  over  a  bed 


THE   ACTION   OF   WATER   ON   CONTINENTS.         109 

of  hard  limestone,  overlying,  in  horizontal  strata,  a 
bank  of  soft  clay.  The  limestone  rock  juts  out 
nearly  40  feet  into  open  space,  and  forms  a  threat- 
ening projection,  an  enormous  protuberance,  which 
appears  every  instant  on  the  point  of  tumbhng  into 
the  gulf  beneath. 

The  lower  bed  of  clay  is  incessantly  undermined 
by  the  clouds  of  vapor  and  foam  which  continually 
lise  from  the  basin  into  which  the  cascade  falls, 
and  strike  the  earthy  wall  with  the  violence  of  shot. 
The  hmestone  bed,  thus  deprived  of  its  support, 
becomes  disintegrated  and  crumbles  into  pieces, 
which  fall  into  the  lower  basin,  causing  by  their  fall 
a  shock  which  is  sometimes  felt  at  a  great  distance, 
and  echoes  through  the  air  like  a  clap  of  distant 
thunder. 

When  the  river  has  passed  the  falls  and  reached 
the  foot  of  the  gigantic  dechvity,  it  rolls  its  hoarsely 
roaring  waves  down  the  bottom  of  a  valley  which  it 
has  scooped  oat  for  itself  in  its  fury — a  vaHey,  the 
walls  of  which  it  is  perpetually  raising  from  the 
bottom.  On  the  bed  of  the  river  are  heaped,  pell- 
mell,  rocks,  tossed  promiscuously  one  upon  another  ; 
its  shores  bristle  with  jagged  cliffs,  which  prevent 
the  traveller  from  looking  down  into  the  bottom  of 
the  ravine,  unless  he  approaches  close  to  the  threat- 
ening precipice.  These  vast  heaps  of  fragments, 
these  rocks,  which  came  perhaps  originally  from 
some  far  distant  country,  form  a  marvellous  combi- 
nation of  all  that  is  wild  and  grand,  and  prove  that 
all  these  materials  have  been  torn,  dragged,  swept 
away  from  the  soil  which  gave  them  birth,  by  a 


110  WAl'EK. 

force  which  is  none  other  than  that  of  water — a 
power  no  obstacle  can  resist. 

The  destruction  of  the  rocky  layers  through  which 
this  short  but  terrible  river  flows,  the  modified  form 
of  the  limestone  rocks  through  which  it  hurries  on 
its  course,  have  caused  the  falls  to  move  backwards 
and  still  force  them  to  take  a  retrograde  course. 
In  1829  Mr.  Bakewell  ascertained  that  the  Canadian 
Fall  was  situated  at  a  distance  of  120  to  150  feet 
fi'om  the  spot  which  it  occupied  50  years  before.  If 
the  retrograde  movement  of  the  falls  had  been  going 
on  always  with  the  same  velocity,  the  ravine  into 
which  they  precipitate  themselves  would  have  been 
dug  out  in  10,000  years.  To  render  such  calcula- 
tions exact,  it  would,  however,  be  necessary  to  know 
and  understand  the  topography  of  the  country  be- 
fore the  formation  of  the  falls.  The  action  which 
takes  place  under  our  own  eyes,  may  be  widely  dif- 
ferent from  that  which  took  place  centuries  ago.  In 
hazarding  conjectures  of  this  description  a  wise  re- 
serve is  therefore  desirable ;  nor  is  it  less  difficult  to 
arrive  at  probable  suppositions  as  to  the  future  re- 
trogression of  the  immense  cataract.  In  proportion 
as  it  moves  further  from  the  place  where  it  actually 
escapes,  the  height  of  the  precipice  may  increase  or 
diminish  in  consequence  of  various  modifying  causes 
However  this  may  be,  if  in  the  course  of  years  the 
falls  of  Niagara  should  reach  Lake  Erie,  that  lake 
would  probably  be  dried  up  rapidly,  for  its  greatest 
depth  does  not  exceed  the  height  of  the  falls.  Its 
mean  depth  being  about  120  feet,  it  may  even  be 
dried  up  some  time  before  that  event.     The  tourists 


THE   ACTION   OF  WATER   ON    CONTINENTS.         Ill 

and  travellers  of  the  next  century  wiU  thus  be  de- 
prived of  one  of  the  most  beautiful  spectacles  whicli 
Nature  can  oiffer  them  amidst  all  the  effects,  so  \  a- 
ried  and  changing,  so  picturesque  and  so  grand; 
which  she  knows  how  to  produce  by  means  of  the 
liquid  element. 

Tlie  Zambesi  is  also  a  striking  example  of  vast 
excavations  produced  by  the  action  of  water.  This 
great  African  river  engulfs  itself  in  a  vast  abyss, 
which  it  is  incessantly  deepening,  and  its  fall  pro- 
duces torrents  of  froth  and  vapor  which  rise  into 
the  air  and  become  well  nigh  lost  amid  the  clouds. 
Picture  to  yourself  a  river  much  over  a  mile  wide, 
which  suddenly  finds  itself  without  a  bed,  and  which 
falls  into  a  deep  and  narrow  ravine.  The  waters 
confined  within  this  gulf  boil  up  with  so  much  en- 
ergy that  five  vast  whirlpools,  called  by  the  negroes 
who  dweU  upon  its  shores,  "  the  smoke  that  thun- 
ders," rise  up  towards  heaven  in  light  and  graceful 
columns  which  yield  to  the  wind's  breath ;  white  at 
their  base,  dark  at  their  summit,  they  resemble  the 
smoke  of  a  vast  chimney.  The  immense  fissure 
through  which  the  Zambesi  escapes,  is  a  flaw  in  a 
long  bank  of  basalt;  this  fissure  is  continued  beyond 
the  falls  and  forms  a  long  zig-zag  furrow  in  which 
the  waters  eddy  and  rebound  with  great  force,  part 
of  its  sides  being  carved  and  seamed  by  the  ever- 
moving  water,  which  wears  and  polishes  them  un- 
ceasingly.* 

But  it  is  especially  near  the  falls  of  the  Felou  that 

*  Livingstone's  Explorations  in  South  Africa. 


112  WATER. 

tJie  most  beautiful  and  sculpture-like  effects  of  fresh 
water  may  be  seeu  acting  on  a  rocky  substance.  The 
Senegambian  river  flows  between  banks  formed  by 
natural  embankments  in  stone.  Its  waters  put  in  mo- 
tion the  pebbles  of  red  quartz  which  they  meet  with 
in  their  course,  and  the  rock,  worn  away  as  if  by  the 
action  of  the  drill  or  the  chisel,  is  cut  into  numerous 
holes.  At  the  time  of  the  year  when  the  waters  are 
low,  we  find  at  the  bottom  of  these  cavities  or  pot- 
holes, as  we  call  them,  piles  of  pebbles  which  reveal 
this  mode  of  formation.  In  other  places  the  rocks 
are  carved  into  small  fissures  of  every  sort,  and  rep- 
resent designs  in  intaglio,  not  less  Avorthy  our  atten- 
tion, "  so  much  do  they  resemble  miniature  cathe- 
drals, Prometheuses,  Laocoons,  horses,  men,  strange 
and  nameless  animals,  and  antique  sarcophagi, 
Gothic  baths  and  human  footprints.  These  marvels 
have  exercised  the  imagination  of  the  negroes  and 
given  rise  to  a  host  of  legends."^ 

Switzerland  and  the  Pyrenees  both  abound  in 
similar  marvels.  Who  has  not  heard  of  the  beauties 
of  the  falls  of  the  Rhine  near  Shaffhausen,  and  can 
there  be  anything  more  sublime  than  the  ten  or  twelve 
torrents  which  throw  themselves  from  the  heights 
of  the  Circus  of  Gavarnie  ?  Imagine  a  semicircular 
area  enclosed  by  a  wall  over  one  thousand  feet  high, 
surmounted  with  snow  ;  picture  to  yourself  on  the 
summit  of  this  amphitheatre  a  series  of  battlements 
formed  by  the  glaciers,  which  give  birth  to  abound- 
ing torrents.     The  most  considerable  of  the  falls  of 

*  RaflfeneVf  Voyage  in  the  Land  of  the  Negroes. 


THE  ACTION  OF  WATER  ON  CONTINENTS. 


118 


<3avariiie  has  an  altitude  of  over  1,200  feet.  "  It  falls 
gently  as  a  descending  cloud  or  as  a  muslin  veil, 
which  is  being  spread  oujb — the  air  breaks  its  fall ; 
the  eye  finds  pleasure  in  following  the  graceful  un- 
dulations of  this  beautiful  aerial  veil.  It  glides 
down  the  whole  length  of  the  rocks,  and  appears 


Falls  of  the  Rhine. 


rather  to  float  than  to  flow.  The  sun  shines  through 
its  feathery  waters  with  the  softest  and  most  agree- 
able lustre.  It  reaches  the  bottom  in  a  form  resem- 
bling a  plume  of  light  and  softly  waving  feathers, 
and  rises  up  again  in  a  dense  silvery  dust ;  the  cool 
and  transparent  vapors  rise  and  fall  gracefully 
around  the  wet  stones,  and  their  rebounding  trail 
mounts  lightly  up  along  the  precipice.  The  air  is 
motionless,  and  no  living  creature  exists  in  this  soli- 
tude.    Nothing  is  to  be  heard  but  the  monotonous 


114  WATER. 

murmur  of  the  cascades,  which  resembles  the  rust- 
Hug  of  the  leaves  in  a  forest,  agitated  by  the  wind."* 
Where  great  rivers  are  shallow,  and  pour  their 
waters  over  low  cliffs  as  over  an  irregular  dam,  the 
fall  is  called  a  cataract,  such  as  the  Nile  forms  in  its 
upper  part ;  while  isolated  cliffs,  forcing  the  water 
back  with  great  violence,  and  producing  a  rotary 
movement,  cause  whirlpools.  Rapids,  on  the  otiier 
hand,  owe  their  origin  generally  to  the  sudden  nar- 
rowing of  the  bed  of  a  river,  which  is  thus  compelled 
to  rush  through  the  confined  space  with  furious 
haste.  The  most  remarkable  are  those  of  the  Con- 
necticut River,  which,  at  one  place,  400  feet  wide, 
is  all  of  a  sudden  forced  through  narrows  leaving 
scarcely  a  space  of  fifteen  feet ;  the  waters  are  so 
forcibly  compressed  by  the  current  from  above,  that 
lead  and  iron  swim  on  them  like  cork,  and  even  a 
crowbar  cannot  be  forced  down  to  any  considerable 
depth. 

•  Taine,  Travels  in  the  Pyrenees. 


CHAPTEK  n. 

DELTAS. 

"  On  the  same  principle  by  which  waters  are  continually  wasting  away  por- 
tions of  our  continents,  they  must  be  perpetually  creating  some  portion  of  new 
land,  proportionate  in  size  to  that  which  they  carry  away."— Beudant. 

After  the  melting  of  the  snows,  or  after  a  violent 
storm,  the  water-courses  become  greatly  increased 
in  bulk ;  they  overflow  their  banks,  they  spread  out 
into  the  valleys  and  cover  them  with  a  large  liquid 
sheet,  which  deposits  a  thick  layer  of  mud.  When 
the  waters  swell  quietly  in  the  bosom  of  lakes,  they 
surrender  likewise  all  these  earthy  substances  whicli 
elsewhere  are  carried  away  by  currents  in  their 
rapid  course,  forming  thus  deposits  of  a  greater  or 
less  thickness.  "  When  the  rivers,"  says  Cuvier, 
"  have  at  length  reached  the  sea,  and  when  the  ra- 
pidity which  swept  away  the  particles  of  clay  has  at 
length  ceased,  these  particles  are  deposited  on  the 
sides  of  the  river's  mouth,  forming  thus  gradually  a 
soil  which  lengthens  out  the  coast,  and  if  the  sea- 
board be  of  a  form  which  allows  the  waves  to  cast 
upon  it  much  mud,  and  in  this  way  to  contribute 
its  share  to  such  an  extension,  whole  provinces  and 
entire  kingdoms  are  thus  created,  usually  the  most 


116  WATER. 

fertile,  and  whenever  the  government  allows  industry- 
to  develop  itself  untrammelled,  the  richest  in  the 
world." 

The  mud  which  the  rivers  set  in  motion  is  thus 
deposited  in  lakes  and  inland  seas,  and  at  the 
mouths  of  streams,  which  fall  into  the  ocean,  and 
gives  birth  to  three  distinct  classes  of  deltas. 

The  alluvial  soil  which  is  formed  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Khone,  towards  the  upper  end  of  the  lake  of 
Geneva,  affords  a  striking  instance  of  the  enormous 
size  which  superincumbent  layers  of  mud  may 
acquire  in  a  short  space  of  time.  The  village  of 
Portus  Valesiae  (Port  Valais),  which  stood  eight 
centuries  ago  on  the  very  edge  of  the  Swiss  lake,  is 
now  actually  separated  from  it  by  a  tongue  of  land 
over  6,000  feet  long.  The  sand  and  mud  deposited 
by  the  waters  have  formed  this  vast  territory,  and 
we  can  even  now  see  the  liquid  element  daily  as 
it  gives  birth  to  a  great  number  of  smaller  deltas  on 
the  banks  of  the  Lake  of  Geneva,  perpetually  invade 
the  dominions  of  the  blue  and  transparent  waves. 

Lake  Superior,  the  largest  lake  in  the  world, 
which  covers  an  area  almost  equal  to  that  of  France, 
sends  forth  from  its  bosom  considerable  quantities 
of  earthy  substances  and  of  sediment  which  are  reg- 
ularly deposited  in  thick  layers.  Like  the  other 
Canadian  lakes.  Lake  Superior  presents  upon  its 
shores  precious  evidence  of  the  work  effected  by  its 
waters  in  times  long  gone  by,  and  from  these  we 
learn  that  its  waters  attained  formerly  a  very  high 
level.  At  a  long  distance  from  its  present  shores 
we  meet  with  parallel  rows  of  pebbles  and  banks  of 


THE  ACTION  OF  WATER  ON   CONTINENTS.         117 

shells,  which  form  one  above  another  superincum- 
bent layers  resembling  the  steps  of  an  amphitheatre. 
These  rows  of  pebbles  washed  up  here  by  the 
waters,  these  collections  of  shells  brought  together 
by  the  motion  of  the  waves,  present  a  striking 
analogy  with  the  banks  which  are  now  rising  in  like 
manner  round  a  number  of  bays.  They  sometimes 
reach  a  considerable  height,  and  some  are  found 
upon  ground  more  than  45  feet  higher  than  the 
present  level. 

The  majority  of  rivers  form  at  their  mouths  deltas 
larger  or  smaller,  which  infringe  upon  and  modify 
the  domain  of  the  ocean  by  subjecting  the  outline  of 
its  shores  to  great  and  frequent  changes.  The 
account  which  Strabo  gives  us  of  the  delta  of  the 
^  Rhone  in  the  Mediterranean  does  not  agree  with  its 
present  configuration,  a  fact  indicating  the  altera- 
tions which  have,  since  the  days  of  Augustus,  modi- 
fied the  aspect  of  that  country.  The  increase  of 
this  delta  during  the  last  ten  centuries  is  however 
measurable,  owing  to  the  existence  of  certain  struc- 
tures which  speak  to  us  in  clear  language.  Far 
distant  from  the  present  coast  we  can  still  see  seve- 
ral rows  of  towers  and  nautical  signal  stations  which 
vsrere  certainly  erected  on  the  coast  itseK.  The 
peninsula  of  Mega,  described  by  Pomponius  Mela, 
is  now  inland,  far  away  from  the  shores  of  the  Med- 
iterranean. The  tower  of  Tignaux,  erected  on  the 
coast  in  1737,  is  now  nearly  5,500  feet  distant  from 
the  sea. 

The  Adriatic  Sea  presents  a  combination  of  all  the 
circumstances  which  are  most  favorable  to  the  for- 


118  WATER. 

mation  of  a  delta.  A  bay  which  enters  far  up  into 
the  land,  and  a  sea  without  either  tide  or  currents, 
receiving  the  tribute  of  the  Po,  the  Adige,  and  num- 
erous other  rivers,  thus  presents  us  in  all  its  features, 
the  spectacle  of  the  work  of  forming  a  delta,  as  it  is 
effected  by  the  power  of  transportation  possessed 
by  fresh  water  courses.  All  the  rivers  which  dis- 
charge their  water  into  the  Adriatic  are  incessantly 
making  up  mighty  dams  of  mud  and  sand,  torn 
from  the  lands  through  which  they  have  passed. 
In  this  manner  they  form  against  the  Adriatic  a 
redoubtable  alliance,  a  terrible  coalition,  in  order  to 
advance  the  line  of  coast.  Adria,  which  in  the  time 
of  Augustus  was  able  to  receive  the  Roman  galleys 
in  its  port,  is  now  an  inland  town,  surrounded  by 
fields  situated  at  a  distance  of  eight  leagues  from 
the  coast.  The  town  of  Spina,  which  ^  in  the  days 
of  the  Etruscans  lay  close  upon  the  coast  of  the 
Adriatic,  at  the  mouth  of  a  large  arm  of  the  Po,  is 
now  four  leagues  inland,  and  Bavenna,  in  the  Mid- 
dle Ages  a  famous  seaport,  is  now  nearly  five  miles 
from  the  shore. 

The  Po,  drifting  down  to  its  mouth  enormous 
volumes  of  mud  and  fine  sand,  is  constantly  invad- 
ing the  sea,  which,  having  no  ebb  and  flow,  is  un- 
able to  offer  any  resistance  to  the  intrusions  of  the 
stream.  All  those  countries  are  incessantly  exposed 
to  extensive  changes,  such  as  for  instance  those 
produced  by  the  river  Isonzo,  which  has  gi*adually 
abandoned  its  bed,  driven  from  it  by  its  own  mud 
and  alluvial  deposit.  It  runs  now  above  a  league 
to  the  west  of  its  former  channel,  and  in  the  neigli- 


THE   SYSTEM   OF   CIRCULATION.  119 

borliood  of  Roncai  an  ancient  Roman  bridge  has 
been  found  buried  beneath  fluvial  mud. 

The  Nile,  which,  like  the  majority  of  great  rivers, 
is  subject,  from  the  effects  of  the  atmospheric  varia- 
tions, to  periodical  inundations  and  annual  overflow- 
ings, spreads  its  waters  in  consequence  of  the  grad- 
ual elevation  of  its  bed  over  more  and  more  extensive 
tracts,  and  the  alluvium  gains  every  year  upon  the 
sand  of  the  desert.  Antique  temples  and  statues, 
which  ten  centuries  ago  overhung  its  waters,  are  now 
disappearing  under  a  thick  layer  of  mud.  The 
priests  of  Egypt  were  therefore  correct  in  terming 
their  country  "  a  gift  from  Heaven,"  since  it  owes 
its  fecundity  to  the  generous  river  which  fertilizes  its 
soil. 

In  consequence  of  the  Nile  depositing  its  sedi- 
ments inland,  it  does  not  rapidly  increase  the 
great  delta  at  its  mouth ;  notwithstanding  which 
some  of  the  mouths  of  the  Nile,  mentioned  by  an- 
cient geographers,  are  now  completely  closed,  being 
stopped  up  by  the  mud.  "The  distance  of  the 
island  of  Pharos  from  Egyptus,"  says  Homer,  "is 
equal  to  that  which  a  vessel  can  accomplish  in  a 
day  with  a  favorable  wind."  At  present  a  swimmer 
can,  in  a  few  strokes,  reach  this  island,  which  has 
become  united  to  the  mainland  by  an  artificial  dam. 

The  "  Sacred  Eiver "  has  thus  raised  its  valley 
more  than  sixty  feet,  during  the  160  centuries  of  its 
known  history  ;  for,  by  the  aid  of  ancient  historians, 
dating  from  the  days  of  the  Roman  emperors,  it  can 
be  easily  ascertained  how  much  has  been  gained 
since  their  time,  and  the  same  standard  may  be 


120  WATER. 

lairly  applied  to  preceding  ages.  Occasionally, 
natural  obstacles  force  the  river  to  one  side;  in 
such  cases  it  covers  gradually  the  whole  valley  with 
mud  and  slime,  raising  it  not  unfrequently  hundreds 
of  feet,  and  changing  its  course.  The  Mississippi, 
it  is  well  known,  is  continually  "  wandering  "  in  this 
way,  changing  its  bed  more  or  less  every  season ; 
the  Gihon,  which  formerly  fell  into  the  Caspian  Sea, 
now  flows,  pressed  back  by  sand-banks,  its  own  off- 
spring, into  Lake  Aral ;  the  Po  and  the  Adige  have 
raised  their  bed  so  that  they  are  now  higher  than 
the  adjoining  plains,  and  in  like  manner,  several 
canals  in  Holland  are  raised  high  above  fields  and 
meadows. 

The  greatest  delta  on  earth  is  that  of  the  Ganges, 
which  measures  over  200  miles  in  width  and  length. 
From  the  highest  mountain  range  of  our  earth, 
water  flows  in  a  thousand  tributaries  toward  the 
giant  river,  till,  united  with  the  Brahmapootra,  it 
strikes  the  northern  point  of  the  Gulf  of  Bengal. 
The  immense  proportion  of  mud  which  it  brings 
with  it,  often  a  hundredth  part  of  its  volume,  is  here 
deposited,  arrested  as  it  is  by  the  inflowing  tide  of 
ocean,  and  forms  a  vast  plain,  known  as  the  Sun- 
derbund,  consisting  of  swamp  and  morass,  shallow 
lakes  and  immense  jungle,  the  home  of  tigers,  croc- 
odiles and  serpents. 

When  the  rivers,  instead  of  pouring  their  waters 
into  inland  seas,  throw  themselves  into  the  ocean, 
they  become  subject  to  the  influence  of  tides,  and 
the  deltas  are  in  consequence  less  rapid  in  forma- 
tion.    The  tidal  currents  maintain  a  fierce  struggle 


THE  SYSTEM  OF  CIRCULATION.  121 

with  the  river  current,  and  often  instead  of  the  land 
making  an  inroad  upon  the  sea,  it  is  the  salt  water 
which  penetrates  far  into  the  mouth  of  a  fresh 
water  river.  The  ocean  thus  intrudes  into  the  con- 
tinent and  there  forms  a  gulf,  an  estuary,  in  fact  a 
negative  delta. 

But  when  the  volume  of  the  river  is  very  consider- 
able, when  the  velocity  of  its  waters  is  enormous, 
the  action  of  the  tides  may  be  neutraUzed,  and  the 
continental  artery  succeed  in  constructing  its  delta 
in  spite  of  the  wrath  of  the  waves. 

When  the  waters  of  rivers  are  low,  the  tide  exer- 
cises its  influence  as  far  as  the  extremity  of  the  delta, 
but  when  they  are  swollen  by  tropical  rains,  they 
rush  forward  with  an  impetuosity  which  is  terrible, 
and  they  are  capable  of  resisting  the  oscillations  of 
the  sea  to  repulse  the  mighty  element  and  to  sur- 
mounting every  obstacle.  The  delta  then  increases 
in  a  short  space  of  time,  and  rapidly  advances 
against  the  empire  of  the  waves.  During  the  other 
seasons  of  the  year  the  waves  of  the  sea  take  a  ter- 
rible revenge ;  the  army  of  billows  sweeps  unham- 
pered through  the  channels,  drowning  the  alluvial 
plains,  and  the  salt  water  makes  reprisals  at  the  ex- 
pense of  the  fresh  water. 


CHAPTER  ILL 

INUNDATIONS. 

"  It  iB  au  error  to  estimate  the  harmonies  of  nature  by  merely  calculatlxio 
what  advantages  may  be  drawn  from  them  by  man  ;  for  if  nature  be  his  aux- 
iliary, she  is  at  the  same  time  his  antagonist.  He  is  constantly  carrying  on 
against  her  a  war  which  admits  of  no  truce,  combating  her  with  her  own 
weapons,  until  the  inevitable  day  in  which  he  has  to  confess  himself  van- 
quished."— Latjgel. 

The  peaceful  rivers  of  large  plains  occasionally 
have  their  times  of  wrath  and  passion.  In  times  of 
peace,  their  wide,  level  bed  affords  them  ample 
room ;  but  when  the  windows  of  heaven,  and  the 
sluices  of  the  earth  are  opened,  these  mighty  ar- 
teries also  swell,  the  rivers  overflow  their  banks, 
and,  like  lakes,  inundate  boundless  plains.  Where 
rains  occur  periodically,  inundations  also  accom- 
pany them  regularly.  The  Orinoco  rises  from  April 
to  September,  often  nearly  100  feet,  and  then  affords 
for  months  the  magnificent  spectacle  of  an  inland 
sea,  100  miles  wide,  and  more  than  1,000  miles 
long,  with  countless  whirlpools  and  waterfalls.  Only 
in  October  it  recedes,  and  resumes,  in  February,  its 
former  bed.  The  Ganges  also  rises  in  April,  when 
the  snows  of  the  Himalaya  swell  its  waters,  and, 


THE   SYSTEM  OF   CIRCULATION. 


123 


uniting  with  the  Brahmapootra,  forms  an  immenso 
lake,  with  here  and  there  a  town  or  a  village  rising 
like  islands.  The  inundations  of  the  Nile  are 
blessings,  but  the  June-rise  of  our  Mississippi 
turns  but  too  often  into  a  curse. 


The  Orinoco. 


Not  unfrequently  sudden  inundations  become  the 
causes  of  fearful  disasters.  Thus,  in  1816,  the 
White  Mountains,  in  New  Hampshire,  were  (after 
two  years  of  drought)  inundated  by  a  deluge  of  rain. 


124  WAlTEll. 

The  torrents-thus  formed,  flowing  rapidly  along  tlie 
sides  of  the  mountains,  rolled  large  stones  down  to 
the  banks  of  the  river  Saco  ;  their  speed  becoming 
accelerated  from  second  to  second,  it  was  not  long 
before  they  drew  along  with  them  earth  and  trees, 
which  they  had  uprooted.  One  of  these  moving 
masses,  measuring  not  less  than  100  yards  in  extent, 
precipitated  itself  into  the  bed  of  the  Saco,  and  pro- 
duced a  partial  overflow,  whilst  other  torrents  also 
became  visibly  SAVoUen  under  the  influence  of  the 
rain.  In  a  few  hours  several  valleys  were  com- 
pletely inundated,  and  from  all  parts,  torrents  came 
rushing  down  furiously,  bringing  with  them  uprooted 
teees  and  whole  forests,  torn  from  the  ground,  and 
falling  like  stalks  of  wheat  beneath  the  scythe  of  the 
reaper.  The  rivers  Saco  and  Ammonoosuck  com- 
pletely overflowed  their  banks,  burst  forth  from  tl)eir 
channels,  and  deluged  the  surrounding  plains  so 
completely,  that  in  a  short  time  many  square  miles 
of  neighboring  country  presented  a  terrible  scene  of 
devastation. 

In  1818  the  valley  of  Bagnes  was  converted  into 
an  immense  lake,  owing  to  the  stopping  up  of  some 
outlets  by  avalanches.  This  lake  was  dammed  up 
by  glaciers  and  by  embankments  of  snow,  which 
melted  in  the  spring,  and  the  valley,  full  of  water, 
became  empty  in  less  than  half  an  hour.  The 
waters  formed  across  the  open  defiles  a  torrent  of 
nearly  20,000  cubic  feet  in  bulk,  and,  precipitating 
themselves  with  a  speed  of  30  feet  to  the  second, 
they  inundated,  to  a  great  distance  off,  the  adjacent 
country,  carrying  with  them  houses,  trees,  rocks. 


THE  ACTION   OF   WATER  ON   CONTINENTS.         1^5 

find  ploughed  soil.  The  list  of  such  disasters  is, 
unhappily,  but  too  long,  and  examples  of  the  same 
description  might  be  infinitely  multiplied.  In  these 
catastrophes,  water  displays  all  the  violence  of  its 
activity  ;  sweeping  away  without  pity  the  products 
of  nature,  together  with  the  works  of  man,  and  re- 
veahng  itself  to  us,  to  employ  an  expression  of  Pin- 
dar's, as  "  the  strongest  and  most  powerful  of  all 
the  elements." 

The  Ehone,  the  Loire,  and  indeed  most  rivers 
are  liable  to  frequent  floods,  with  their  well  known 
melancholy  consequences,  and  to  prevent  the  return 
of  such  fatal  occurrences  has  long  been  felt  a  neces- 
sity. But  how  can  we  meet  so  formidable  an 
enemy?  Ought  we  to  erect  perpendicular  banks, 
or  dig  out  vast  basins?  Ought  we  to  construct 
veins  ?  All  these  works  may  be  attended  with  more 
or  less  happy  results,  but  after  all  it  is  not  so  much 
the  evil  which  we  have  to  attack  as  the  cause  which 
we  should  study,  so  as  to  anticipate  and  prevent  its 
working.  The  whole  system  of  water-courses  seems 
for  some  years  past  to  have  become  extremely  ir- 
regular ;  for  while  on  one  hand  some  rivers  have 
become  subject  to  sudden  floods,  and  have  over- 
flowed their  banks,  burst  all  barriers,  and  deluged 
surrounding  countries,  others  have  become  choked 
with  sand,  and  abundant  streams,  and  perennial 
springs  have  dried  up.  What  has  caused  this  dis- 
arrangement in  the  hydraulic  system — this  disorder 
in  the  arteries  of  whole  continents  ?  In  order  to 
answer  these  questions,  we  have  only  to  walk 
through  forests  that  are  being  cleared,  and  look  at 


126  WATER. 

the  trees  on  the  mountain  sides  faUing  under  the 
wood-cutter's  axe,  and  there  we  see  at  work  the 
fellow-laborers  of  the  inundation.  The  effects  of 
this  system  of  clearage  are  nowhere  more  manifest 
than  in  America,  where  natural  phenomena  are,  so 
to  speak,  amplified,  and  for  that  reason  more  easily 
explained. 

In  the  year  1800,  Humboldt  sought,  near  the  city 
of  Nueva  Valencia,  for  the  lake  of  Valencia,  of  which 
he  had  found  numerous  descriptions  in  the  works  of 
old  writers.  But  the  lake  of  which  so  much  had 
been  said  was  now  nothing  more  than  a  pool,  and 
the  islands  on  it  were  mere  hillocks.  The  change 
was  easily  explained  by  the  fact  that  during  the 
intervening  two  centuries,  numerous  clearings  had 
taken  place  in  the  neighborhood.  Twenty-five  years 
later  M.  Boussingault  visited  the  same  region,  and 
the  lake  seemed  to  have  regained  its  former  size ; 
for  twenty-five  years  of  neglected  cultivation — the 
result  of  civil  war — had  enabled  the  neighboring 
forests  to  provide  shade  with  their  thick  branches. 
In  Ascension  Island  the  same  phenomenon  has  been 
observed.  A  mountain  was  cleared  of  its  wood, 
and  in  consequence,  an  abundant  spring  in  the 
vicinity  dried  up.  Later,  however,  the  spring  re- 
appeared, with  the  trees,  which  had  been  permitted 
to  grow  again.  In  other  regions,  also,  the  cutting 
down  of  forests  is  followed  by  frequent  inundations, 
while  in  still  others,  where  the  trees  are  preserved, 
the  system  of  water- courses  remains  unchanged. 
On  the  road  to  Quito  for  instance,  is  to  be  seen  the 
Lake  of  San  Pablo.     From  the  period  of  the  first 


THE   ACTION   OF  WATER  ON   CONTINENTS.         1'27 

invasion  of  Peru,  the  country  has  remained  the 
same ;  the  trees  have  been  respected,  and  the  lake 
has  never  varied.  These  facts  prove  that  clearings 
favor  the  evaporation  of  the  water,  render  the 
rain-falls  irregular,  and  cause  the  drying  up  of  lakes 
and  of  water-courses.  When,  on  the  contrary,  a 
country  is  well  planted  in  trees,  the  rain-water  re- 
mains on  the  surface  of  the  earth,  each  tree  sur- 
rounding itself  with  earthy  matter  which  has  been 
carried  along  by  the  water,  and  which,  in  its  turn, 
stops  it  and  directs  it  into  a  series  of  little  channels. 
If  these  trees  are  cut  down,  torrents  will,  during  the 
heavy  rains,  sweep  down  the  mountain  slopes,  and, 
not  meeting  with  any  obstacle,  they  will  cause  the 
rivers  to  overflow.  But  more  important  still  is  the 
influence  of  forests.  Their  leaves  condense  during 
the  night  the  vapors  of  the  atmosphere  ;  they  de- 
prive the  air  of  its  moisture,  and  render  the  rains 
less  violent ;  in  a  word,  forests  regulate  the  distri- 
bution of  water,  put  obstacles  in  the  way  of  the  soil 
being  washed  away,  and  prevent,  or  at  least  retard, 
the  rivers  becoming  obstructed  by  sand  banks. 

The  importance  of  forests  for  an  adequate  supply 
of  water  cannot  well  be  over-estimated.  On  bare 
ground,  rain-water  runs  off  quickly,  and  often  in  tor- 
rents, to  the  brooks  and  rivers,  which  suddenly  rise 
and  inundate  the  plain  ;  while  the  sheltering  shade 
of  trees  keeps  it  fiom  immediate  evaporation,  and 
the  rich  wood-soil  holds  it  in  its  moss  and  turf  as 
in  a  sponge,  and  thus  gives  it  time  to  sink  slowly 
into  the  soil.  Hence,  well-wooded  regions  invari- 
ably abound  in  springs.     But  forests  act  indirectly 


128  WATER. 

toward  the  same  end  :  on  days  wlien  the  atmosphere 
is  damp  and  filled  with  vapors  and  mists,  they  con- 
dense the  latter  on  their  branches  and  leaves,  so 
that  tree  and  bush  hang  full  of  welcome  drops, 
though  no  rain  has  fallen.  The  services  which 
forests  thus  render  were  well  known  to  the  ancients  ; 
Seneca  and  Vitruvius  both  praise  them  for  their 
usefulness  to  man.  Hence,  also,  ^miiius  Paulus, 
the  Consul,  insisted  upon  it  that  there  must  be 
springs  near  Mount  Olympus,  because  it  was  so  well 
wooded,  and  though  no  trace  appeared  at  first,  upon 
digging  into  the  ground  an  abundance  of  water  was 
procured. 

Unfortunately,  other  nations  have  not  been  as 
wise  as  the  Romans.  In  Spain,  vast  districts,  once 
covered  with  golden  harvests,  year  after  year,  are 
now  utter  deserts,  all  the  woods  having  been  cut 
down  for  miles  around.  Very  different  was  the 
policy  of  the  Turks.  Near  Constantinople  rises  a 
magnificent  forest  of  oaks  and  beeches,  which  is 
held  sacred,  stringent  laws  prohibiting  the  cutting 
of  a  single  tree.  This  forest  feeds  the  springs 
which  furnish  the  great  city  with  its  supply  of 
water. 

Our  own  people  are  but  very  slowly  learning  the 
lesson,  and  many  a  farmer  in  the  West  has  painfully 
to  plant  young  trees  again  on  the  very  spot  where 
his  father's  narrow-bladed  Yankee  axe  cut  down 
giants  of  hoary  age.  When  every  foot  of  arable 
laud  was  covered  with  trees,  and  when  behind  every 
tree  lurked  an  Indian,  it  was  quite  necessary,  no 
doubt,  to  chop  and  shoot  indiscriminately.     But  by 


THE  ACTION   OF   WATEK   ON   CONTINENTS.         12J 

cutting  down  trees  thus  upon  every  mountain- side, 
and  in  every  ravine,  we  have  inevitably  entailed  two 
great  evils  upon  posterity — scarcity  of  fuel  and 
scarcity  of  water.  More  especially  is  this  the  case 
where  a  raihoad  or  smelting  furnace  has  created 
a  profitable  market  for  fuel ;  in  such  regions  the 
trees  have  gone,  and  with  them  the  water,  and  the 
meadows  and  fields  are  dry  and  parched. 

There  is  folly  in  this  haste  to  be  rich.  A  keen 
axe,  in  a  stout  woodman's  hand,  will  destroy  in  an 
hour  what  it  has  taken  a  century  to  produce,  and 
what  a  century  cannot  replace.  A  few  cords  of 
wood  represent  a  snug  sum,  but  what  are  the  dollars 
in  comparison  to  a  perpetual  fountain  ?  A  few  acres 
added  to  a  farm  are  dearly  purchased  by  cursing 
the  land  for  generations  with  drought  and  barren- 
ness. It  is  gratifying  to  find  that  the  good  common 
sense  of  our  people  has  led  them,  to  some  extent,  to 
see  the  evil  that  is  done,  and  to  repair  the  injury. 
In  Ohio,  in  one  or  two  of  the  New  England  States, 
and  especially  in  the  young,  vigorous  States  of  the 
Northwest,  large  plantations  are  beginning  to  grow 
up,  which,  there  is  reason  to  hope,  will  soon  add  to 
our  supply  of  wood,  and  prevent  the  distressing 
droughts  of  our  summers. 

The  history  of  the  Isthmus  of  Suez  has  taught  us, 
recently,  a  striking  lesson  in  this  respect.  A  few 
years  ago  the  whole  region  through  which  M.  de 
Lesseps'  famous  canal  now  passes  hundreds  of 
richly  laden  vessels,  was  a  sterile  desert — the  rain- 
falls amounting  often  to  less  than  an  inch  during 
the  year.     There  were  no  trees  to  be  seen  far  or 


130  WATER. 

near.  When  the  energetic  Frenchman  began  his 
gigantic  enterprise,  he  at  once  directed  thousands 
of  trees  to  be  planted  in  proper  locaUties  ;  they 
grew  up,  thanks  to  careful  irrigation,  and  now  the 
astonished  eye  of  the  traveller  beholds  blooming 
prairies  and  stately  forests,  where  once  all  was 
waste  and  wild  desert.  But  a  still  greater  change 
has  come  over  the  climate  :  rain  falls  now  frequently 
and  abundantly,  the  soil  produces  richly;  and  if 
that  man  is  to  be  counted  a  benefactor  who  can 
make  a  blade  of  grass  to  grow  where  none  could  be 
raised  before,  true  glory  belongs  to  him  who  has 
thus  created,  as  it  were,  a  fertile  land,  capable  of 
maintaining  thousands  of  industrious  and  happy 
citizens. 


CHAPTEE  IV. 

CHEMICAL  ACTION. — PETRIFYING   SPRINGS — CAVERNS 
— STALACTITES. 

"  Certain  waters  have  the  power  of  petrifying  and  converting  into  marble 
the  substances  which  they  touch." — Ovid. 

The  effects  produced  by  so-called  petrifying 
springs  have,  at  all  times,  attracted  the  attention  of 
naturalists.  "  At  Perperene,"  says  Pliny,  "  there  is 
a  fountain  which  petrifies  all  the  earth  which  it 
waters,  which  is  also  the  case  with  some  hot  springs 
at  Delium,  in  Eubcea,  for  at  the  spot  where  the 
water  falls,  stones  are  formed  one  above  another. 
At  Eurymenes,  the  garlands  which  are  cast  into  cer- 
tain fountains  become  petrified.  At  Oolossa  flows 
a  river  which  turns  the  bricks  that  are  thrown  into 
it,  Ukewise,  into  stone.  In  the  Mines  of  Scyros  all 
the  trees  washed  by  the  waters  there  become  petri- 
fied, with  all  their  branches." 

This  idea  of  changing  a  body  into  stone  by  contact 
with  certain  waters,  has  been  handed  down  from 
one  age  to  another,  and  even  in  our  own  days  num- 
bers of  persons  imagine  that  the  so-called  petrify- 


132  WATER. 

iug  springs  transform  organic  substances  into  stone. 
This  is,  of  course,  a  mistake. 

The  liquid,  charged  with  carbonate  of  lime,  de- 
posits the  salt,  which  it  holds  in  solution,  on  the 
surface  of  organic  bodies,  animal  or  vegetable,  and 
covers  them  with  a  solid  layer,  a  coating  of  stone, 
a  chalky  varnish,  which  adapts  itself  to  the  exter- 
nal form  of  the  object  which  it  covers,  but  does  not 
take  the  place  of  the  material  of  which  it  consists. 
Thus,  organic  substances  become  clothed  in  a  solid 
envelope,  and  may  be  preserved  for  a  long  period 
in  an  unchanged  form. 

In  France,  near  Clermont  (Puy  de  Dome),  at  St. 
Alyre,  at  St.  Nectaire,  and  in  numerous  other  places, 
there  exist  springs  and  fountains  which  possess  this 
incrusting  property.  Baskets  of  fruit,  bird's  nests, 
branches,  and  various  other  objects  are  placed  in 
the  water,  and  in  a  very  short  time  become  covered 
with  a  stony  coating.  The  waters  of  Hieropolis, 
in  Asia  Minor,  present  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
phenomena  to  be  met  with  anywhere  in  connection 
with  incrustation ;  they  run  down  the  slope  of  a 
mountain  and  form  there  a  series  of  beautiful  cas- 
cades in  stone.  It  is  weU  known  that  waters  in  the 
gTeat  caves  of  our  Union,  like  the  Mammoth  Cave  of 
Kentucky  and  the  smaller  caves  of  Virginia,  possess 
the  same  remarkable  properties. 

The  water  from  the  clouds,  charged  with  the  car- 
bonic acid  of  the  air,  often  has  to  pass  through  thick 
layers  of  calcareous  soil,  and  dissolves  large  quan- 
tities of  carbonate  of  lime  by  means  of  the  acid  which 
it  holds  in  solution.     By  its  weight  it  sinks  into  the 


THE   ACTION   05    WATEK   ON   CONTINENTS.         133 

ground,  and  should  it  meet  in  its  progress  caverns 
and  chasms,  it  evaporates  on  coming  into  contact 
with  the  air,  losing  its  carbonic  acid,  and  the  Kme- 
stone  which  it  held  in  solution  produces  fantastic 
ornaments,  to  which  nature  delights  in  lending  a 
thousand  fantastic  forms. 

Natural  caverns  are  thus  frequently  adorned  with 
stalactites,  deposits  conical  in  their  form,  resulting 
from  the  infiltration  of  mineral  waters  through 
their  walls,  and  forming  vertically  from  top  to  base, 
in  a  shape  similar  to  those  needles  of  ice  which  we 
see  on  the  eaves  of  our  houses  in  winter.  The  for- 
mation of  stalactites  remained  long  unexplained,  it 
being  supposed  that  stones  sprouted  and  vegetated 
Uke  plants,  and  for  a  time  no  one  traced  these  mar- 
vellous vegetations  to  the  agency  of  water.  Stalac- 
tites are  generally  formed  of  carbonate  of  lime,  but 
some  are  formed  which  consist  of  flint,  or  of  mala- 
chite, etc. ;  as  however  in  all  cases  their  method  of 
formation  is  the  same,  we  will  confine  our  descrip- 
tion to  the  carbonate  of  lime.  This  substance  is 
indissoluble  in  pure  water,  but  dissolves  in  water 
charged  with  carbonic  acid.  Let  us  imagine  that 
water  of  this  nature  filters  into  the  earth  and  pene- 
trates into  the  fissures  of  rocks,  which  form  the 
walls  of  a  grotto,  or  oozes  through  their  porous 
texture;  some  drops  will  remain  for  a  time  sus- 
pended, and  they  will  successively  evaporate  and 
leave  the  carbonate  of  lime  which  they  held  in  so- 
lution. The  first  drop  will  leave  an  almost  imper- 
ceptible deposit  of  an  annular  form,  the  second  will 
add  to  this  deposit,  and  so  will  the  others,  until  the 


134  WATER. 

whole  assumes  the  form  of  a  quill  of  a  feather,  till 
the  successive  and  continuous  evaporation  of  other 
drops  will  at  length  stop  up  the  orifice.  The  water 
now  trickles  along  the  sides  of  the  quill,  which  in- 
creases externally,  and  as  the  deposits  are  more 
abundant  towards  the  base  than  at  the  extremity, 
in  consequence  of  the  progressive  impoverishment 
of  the  fluid,  the  stalactite  will  speedily  present  the 
appearance  of  a  greatly  elongated  cone. 

The  water  in  escaping  from  the  upper  portion  of 
the  vault  falls  vertically  upon  the  ground.  Arrived 
there  it  evaporates  entirely ;  the  same  takes  place 
with  regard  to  the  other  drops,  which  form  under- 
neath the  stalactite  a  deposit  of  the  same  nature, 
called  a  stalagmite^  The  stalagmites  rising  from  be- 
neath can  in  time  reach  and  meet  the  stalactites, 
which  form  downwards,  and  in  this  manner  are 
formed  the  fantastic  columns  which  decorate  the  in- 
terior of  such  grottoes,  the  apparent  draperies  and 
waving  folds,  the  cascades  suddenly  petrified — in 
one  word,  all  the  vagaries  which  chance  delights  in 
moulding  and  fashioning  after  every  imaginable  pat- 
tern ;  producing  almost  always  most  singular  effects 
by  giving  them  a  grotesque  resemblance  to  real 
objects. 

If  the  feeble  stream  of  water  does  not  drop  from 
the  ceihng,  but  flows  slowly  along  the  surface  of  the 
rock,  enough  lime  is  still  left  behind  to  mark  its  de- 
vious path  and  thus  to  form  a  network  of  dehcate 
tracery,  adorned  here  and  there,  where  water  abound- 
ed, with  graceful  fringes.  At  times,  again,  large, 
quantities  of  water  come  flowing  down  simultane- 


THE  ACTION  OF  WATER  ON  CONTINENTS.         135 

oasly,  and,  when  these  are  very  rich  in  carbonate  of 
lime,  form  apparent  cascades,  curtains  or  masses  of 
driven  snow^.  In  the  course  of  time — and  who  can 
tell  how  many  centuries  must  often  have  passed  be- 
fore whole  vast  caves  are  thus  filled  with  wondrous 
works? — the  roofs,  the  walls,, and  the  floor  are  all 
ornamented  in  lavish  profusion,  and  scenes  of  beauty 
created  such  as  man's  sublimest  genius  could  never 
produce. 

In  France,  especially  in  the  Pyrenees  and  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Besancon,  there  are  several  of 
these  grottoes,  in  which  the  water  is  incessantly  em- 
ployed in  the  construction  of  fantastic  ornaments. 
The  grotto  of  Antiparos,  in  the  Greek  Archipelago, 
which  has  been  visited  and  described  by  the  cele- 
brated naturalist  Tournefort,  is  probably  the  most 
remarkable  in  the  world.  After  that  may  be  ranked 
"  Han's  Hole,"  in  Belgium ;  the  Grotto  des  Demoi- 
selles, in  the  Herault ;  those  of  Arcy  in  Savoy,  of 
Kirkdale  in  England,  and  Baireuth  in  Bavaria,  and 
those  of  our  own  country. 

One  of  the  finest,  though  by  no  means  the  largest 
of  these  fairy  scenes,  is  the  famous  cave  of  Bella- 
mar,  near  Matanzas,  on  the  island  of  Oirba,  probably 
unsurpassed  in  the  world  by  the  beauty  and  marvel- 
lous variety  of  its  crystallizations.  The  happy  man- 
ner in  which  stalactites  and  stalagmites  here  blend 
is  one  of  the  chief  wonders  of  the  place.  Now  they 
form,  jointly,  rich  curtains  of  white,  delicate  lace, 
woven  in  patterns  such  as  human  ingenuity  never 
devised,  and  again  they  hang  like  motionless  cas- 
cades, suddenly  arrested  by  the  magician's  wand. 


136  WATER. 

One  of  the  latter,  the  Diamond  Cascade,  is  especially 
beautiful,  resembling  strikingly  a  casket  of  diamonds 
poured  out  profusely  over  a  gentle  slope,  and  resting 
there  in  a  glittering  shower  forever  suspended  in  the 
air. 

The  Grotto  of  Han  is  situated  in  the  Province  of 
Namur.  A  Httle  river,  the  Lesse,  penetrates  into  a 
rocky  cavity  at  the  foot  of  an  eminence  and  disap- 
pears in  the  depths  of  a  dark  gulf  with  a  deafening 
roar.  It  reappears  again  a  mile  off  on  the  opposite 
side  of  the  hill,  and  its  waters,  so  agitated  a  while 
before,  are  now  as  calm  and  limpid  as  if  they  had 
issued  from  a  fountain  of  crystal.  What  road  can 
they  have  travelled  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth  ?  No 
one  can  tell.  If  floating  bodies  are  thrown  into  the 
Lesse  on  the  side  of  the  hill  where  it  loses  itself,  they 
are  never  found  on  the  other ;  and  if  the  waters  at 
their  entrance  are  troubled  and  blackened  by  a  tem- 
pest, they  take  an  entire  day  for  their  transparency 
to  be  defiled  at  their  exit.*  Beneath  the  rock  from 
which  the  Lesse  issues  to  continue  its  course,  reigns 
a  fearful  gloom.  All  is  dark,  and  a  deep  gulf  has  to 
be  penetrated  ere  we  can  explore  the  wonders  of  this 
curious  cavern.  The  grotto  of  Han  is  composed 
of  22  different  chambers  and  numerous  narrow  and 
very  long  passages.  These  cavities  are  no  doubt 
the  result,  in  the  first  instance,  of  eai*thquakes  and 

*  This  fiact,  which  is  common  to  some  other  rivers,  such  as  the 
Bhone,  etc.,  may  be  easily  explained  if  we  suppose  the  water  to 
pass,  during  its  subterranean  journey,  through  a  rock  pierced 
with  small  holes,  a  natural  filter  which,  whilst  it  givea  passage  t» 
Die  liquid,  retains  the  heavier  substances. 


THE  ACTION  OF  WATER  ON  CONTINENTS.    137 

the  vibrations  of  the  soil ;  they  afterwards  became 
pohshed,  the  interior  being  worn  away  by  the  con- 
stant action  of  subterranean  waters,  and  gradually 
began  to  bristle  with  deposits  of  stalagmites. 


PISOLITES— OOLITES. 
The  water  which  holds  solid  matter  in  solution, 
gives  birth  also  to  other  concretions,  termed  by  ge- 
ologists "pisolites  "  or  "  oolites,"  according  to  the  size 
and  shape  of  their  grains.  These  globular  stones 
are  formed  under  the  influence  of  whirlpools  which 
gush  up  in  the  basins  in  which  incrusting  waters 


PisoKtes  and  Oolites. 

meet.  These  latter,  by  their  motion,  lift  up  and 
keep  suspended  in  the  liquid,  particles  of  sand,  which 
become  centres  of  attraction.  The  dissolved  calca- 
reous matter  deposits  itself  upon  them  and  sur- 
rounds them  with  a  film,  which  gradually  increases 
and  in  time  becomes  a  thick  envelope.  Meanwhile 
the  grains,  as  they  become  heavier  and  heavier,  sink 
to  the  bottom  of  the  water  and  become  welded  to- 
gether, agglutinate  and  produce  granular  masses. 
We  can  follow  in  our  own  day  the  formation  of  such 


138  WATER. 

stony  masses  in  fche  calcareous  waters  of  Vichy,  of 
Carlsbad  in  Bohemia,  of  Tivoli  near  Kome,  and 
others. 

While  pisolites,  or  pea-stones,  never  form  any  but 
very  small  concretions,  oolites,  on  the  contrary, 
although  their  grains  are  no  larger  than  the  roe  of 
fish,  have  given  birth  to  entire  mountains.  In  this 
case,  of  course,  other  and  powerful  causes  must  have 
been  brought  to  bear,  but  we  can  only  form  conjec- 
tures as  to  the  nature  of  this  singular  formation, 
which  doubtless  originated  in  ancient  geological 
epochs.  This  much  alone  is  certain,  that  here  also 
the  action  of  water  has  been  busily  at  work.  Some 
geologists  are  of  opinion  that  these  concretions  must 
have  been  produced  in  tranquil,  and  rather  shallow 
waters,  where  they  were  at  first  deposited  on  the  sur- 
face of  the  liquid,  thanks  to  their  extreme  delicacy  in 
the  beginning.  Other  savants,  however,  imagine 
them  to  have  drawn  their  origin  from  the  bosom  of 
the  liquid  itself,  and  consider  the  calcareous  matter 
to  have  moulded  itself  round  a  number  of  small  ovoid 
bodies  similar  to  the  eggs  of  fishes;  Others,  again, 
like  Delafosse,  have  had  recourse  to  mechanical  ac- 
tion, and  attribute  the  formation  of  these  strange  con- 
cretions to  the  action  of  the  waves  upon  a  consolidated 
calcareous  sediment.  Whichever  of  these  theories 
be  the  true  one,  water  is  certainly  the  skillful  arti- 
san that  has  moulded  these  singular  stones,  and 
has  agglutinated  these  myriads  of  small  grains  of 
which  certain  rocks  are  entirely  formed ;  and  if  we 
do  not  know  how  the  artist  has  accomplished  the 
task,. we  should  not  the  less  admire  the  work. 


THE   ACTION   OF  WATER   cN   COisTINENTS.         139 

Water  charged  with  carbonic  acid  has  also  the 
power  of  dissolving  limestone  rocks,  and  thus  fre- 
quently produces  deep  excavations.  It  has  been 
suggested  that  the  celebrated  natural  bridge  of  Ain- 
el-Liban  is  the  result  of  such  causes. 


STANDING  WATER. 

After  having  seen  water  in  motion,  hard  at  wort, 
let  us  take  a  glance  at  these  vast  marshes  in  which 
the  Uquid  element  is  in  stagnation,  and  where  it 
spreads  inert  and  lifeless  over  a  uniform  and  level 
soil.  Widely  different  is  the  work  which  it  accom- 
plishes, but  not  less  important  is  the  effect  pro- 
duced. 

Organic  substances,  vegetable  debris  of  all  sorts, 
the  remains  of  reeds  and  other  marsh  plants,  are 
found  collected  in  stagnant  water,  which  disorgan- 
izes and  decomposes  them.  Genuine  fermentation 
is  thus  produced  in  these  ponds  and  morasses  where 
no  current  comes  to  renovate  the  waves  reeking  with 
the  corpses  of  the  vegetable  world.  Noxious  mias- 
mas, mephitic  gases  rise  from  these  immense  vats 
in  which  nature  accumulates  aquatic  mosses  of  every 
sort,  which  in  their  turn  perish  and  add  theif  share 
to  the  general  fermentation.  The  remains  of  trees 
and  plants  become  partially  carbonized  and  form  at 
the  bottom  of  these  marshes  enormous  deposits, 
which  dry  up  during  the  progress  of  ages,  and  are 
transformed  into  peat. 

Such  is  a  hasty  sketch  of  the  effects  produced  in 
the  epidermis  of  the  earth  by  the  labor  of  water. 


140  WATER. 

To  recapitulate,  the  liquid  element  in  its  unwearying 
movement  acts  as  a  mechanical  force  in  diluting  the 
soil,  which  it  moistens,  in  polishing  stones,  and  in 
transporting  mud,  slime  and  clay ;  as  a  physical  force, 
by  dilating  in  congelation,  and  in  thus  giving  an  im- 
pulse to  avalanches  which  cause  rivers  to  overflow 
and  to  produce  inundations  ;  and  finally  as  a  chemi- 
cal force  in  dissolving  rocks  and  minerals.  On  the 
continents,  as  out  at  sea,  the  action  of  water  is  both 
destructive  and  reproductive.  It  carries  away  the 
earthy  particles,  but  it  desposits  them  again  else- 
where. The  mountains  feed  the  delta.  It  dissolves 
limestone  and  floats  it  down  to  the  sea,  but  it  offers 
it  to  the  polypi,  which  seize  upon  it  and  build  with 
it  in  the  midst  of  the  ocean  atols  and  immense  banks 
of  madrepore.  Thus  existing  continents  furnish 
the  materials  for  future  continents. 

The  sight  of  all  these  forces  constantly  at  work 
before  our  eyes,  is  an  evidence  of  the  admirable 
mechanism  which  regulates  the  world.  We  see  by 
what  a  sublime  law  of  compensation  nature  keeps  up 
the  harmony  of  things,  and  how  she  succeeds  in 
maintaining  by  counterpoise  the  equilibrium  of  the 
universal  balance. 


CHAPTER  V. 

YESTERDAY  AND  TO-MORROW. 

'  The  world  does  not  always  present  tx)  us  the  same  aspect ;  where  we  are 
to-day  treading  the  soil  of  a  continent,  these  a  has  flowed,  and  will  one  day  flow 
again  ;  the  region  where  it  flows  now  has  once  been  and  will  again  be  a  conti- 
nent.   Time  modifies  all  things." — Akistotlk's  Treatise  on  Meteoks. 

"As  I  was  one  day  passing  through  a  very  ancient 
and  densely  populated  city,  I  asked  one  of  the  in- 
habitants if  he  could  tell  me  when  it  was  founded. 
*It  is,'  replied  the  man,  'a  great  city,  but  to  in- 
form you  how  long  it  has  existed  would  be  abso- 
lutely impossible,  and  of  that  our  ancestors  were  as 
ignorant  as  ourselves.'  Five  centuries  later  I  re- 
visited the  same  spot,  and  finding  no  vestige  of  a 
town,  I  inquired  of  a  peasant,  who  was  gathering 
herbs  on  its  site,  how  long  a  time  had  passed  since 
its  destruction.  '  By  my  faith,'  he  replied,  '  you 
ask  of  me  a  strange  question.  This  country  has 
never  been  anything  different  to  what  it  is  now.' 
'  But  was  there  not  once  a  great  city  here  ?'  I  in- 
quired. 'Never,'  he  replied,  'as  far  as  we  can 
judge  by  what  we  have  ourselves  seen,  nor  have  our 
fathers    ever  told  us   anything   to    the   contrary.' 


142  WATER. 

Another  five  centuries  passed,  and  again  I  revisited 
the  spot — now  the  sea  covered  the  site.  Seeing  some 
fishermen  on  the  shore  I  asked  them  how  long  it 
had  been  since  the  sea  had  invaded  this  district. 
'  A  man  like  yourself,'  said  they,  *  ought  to  know 
better  than  to  ask  such  a  question.  This  place  has 
always  been  what  it  is  now.'  Again,  at  the  end  of 
another  ^Ye  hundi*ed  years  I  returned  once  more. 
The  sea  was  no  longer  there,  and  I  was  desirous 
of  knowing  how  many  years  before  it  had  re- 
tired. A  man  whom  I  accosted  answered  to  my 
question  as  all  the  others  had  done,  that  is  to  say, 
he  said  that  things  had  always  been  just  as  I  now 
saw  them.  Once  more,  after  a  similar  lapse  of 
.years,  I  returned  for  the  last  time,  and  found  instead 
of  a  desert  a  flourishing  city,  richer,  more  populous 
and  more  magnificent  than  the  first  which  I  had 
seen.  Being  desirous  of  ascertaining  how  long  it 
liad  existed,  I  questioned  the  inhabitants  on  the 
subject,  and  they  replied  :  '  The  origin  of  our  city  is 
lost  in  the  night  of  ages ;  we  do  not  know  when  it 
first  arose,  and  on  this  subject  our  fathers  knew  no 
more  than  we  do  ourselves.'  "  ^ 

Thus  speaks  Kidhz,  an  allegorical  personage  in- 
troduced in  the  writings  of  a  very  ancient  Arab  poet, 
Mohammed  Kaswini,  who  flourished  toward  the 
end  of  the  13th  century,  and  this  graceful  apologue 

*  The  narrative  which  we  have  quoted  is  taken  from  a  very  val- 
uable MS.  in  the  possession  of  the  Biblioth^que  de  Paris,  trans- 
lated by  Messrs.  Chdzy  and  Sacy.  It  has  been  recommended  to  the 
attention  of  geologists  by  Wilhani  E.  Beaumont,  in  1832,  and  Sir 
OLarles  Lyell  reproduced  it  in  his  "Principles  of  Geology." 


THE  ACTION   OF   WATER   ON   CONTINENTS.  143 

sets  forth  in  a  maDner  both  elegant  and  original  the 
reciprocal  changes  of  position  which  the  continents 
and  oceans  have  experienced. 

From  remote  antiquity  philosophers  have  recog- 
nized that  great  changes  must  have  taken  place  on 
the  surface  of  the  globe,  and  the  ancient  systems  of 
Egypt  and  India  have  connected  these  changes  with 
deluges,  but  at  that  time  every  belief  was  based 
upon  superstition,  and  they  imagined  that  the  gods 
interfered  directly  in  all  great  cataclysms.  It  is  not 
long  since  these  confused  theories  have  assumed  a 
more  practical  shape,  and  it  is  from  the  last  century 
only  that  we  can  date  the  birth  of  geology.  In 
studying  the  archives  of  the  primeval  world,  in  what- 
ever part  of  the  terrestrial  globe  they  are  found,  we 
discover  that  a  large  portion  of  the  present  soil  has 
been  formed  at  the  bottom  of  the  ocean.  The  sea 
shells  found  in  it  attest  that  fact  by  irresistible  evi- 
dence. It  is  well  known  that  the  ordinary  stone 
of  some  localities  is  crusted  aU  over  with  shells 
visible  to  the  naked  eye,  and  if  we  examine  a  piece 
of  chalk  with  a  magnifying  glass  we  are  amazed  at 
the  number  of  broken  shells  of  every  sort  which  we 
discern  in  it.  The  calcareous  soils  which  extend 
over  the  surface  of  our  continents  are  in  fact  aque- 
ous deposits.  The  sea  formerly  flowed  over  them, 
and  the  deposits  which  it  gradually  formed,  increas- 
ing with  every  age,  produced  at  length  layers  of 
considerable  thickness,  consisting  entirely  of  debris 
of  animals,  which  lived  in  those  remote  epochs. 

In  digging  into  the  soil  of  Paris  successive  layers 
are  found,  each  of  which  speaks  to  us  a  different 


144  WATER. 

language,  and  the  vestiges  discovered  there  may  be 
regarded  as  so  many  hieroglyphics  graven  by  nature 
upon  the  superincumbent  strata  of  the  terrestrial 
epidermis.  A  careful  examination  of  these  layers 
has  brought  us  to  know  the  deposits  which  have 
gradually  covered  the  primeval  soil,  and  enabled 
us  to  fathom  the  mysteries  which  presided  over 
their  formation.  It  is  thus  that  geology  has  been 
able  to  retrace  the  past,  and  to  unveil  the  history 
of  the  formation  of  Paris  soil.  Excavations  made 
into  the  Buttes  of  Montmartre  have  brought  to  light 
the  following  series  of  deposits  :  1.  A  layer  of  ma- 
rine animals,  indicating  that  this  was  once  the  bed 
of  an  ocean.  2.  A  layer  of  soil  which,  containing 
remains  of  land  animals,  made  it  evident  that  the 
sea  must  have  retreated  from  the  place  which  it  had 
previously  occupied.  3.  A  second  layer  of  shells 
and  marine  animals,  showing  that  the  waters  had 
regained  their  former  dominion,  doubtless  in  conse- 
quenc  of  the  subsidence  of  the  soil.  4.  A  second  layer 
of  debris  of  creatures  which  live  in  the  open  air,  and 
some  of  which  are  almost  identical  with  existing 
species.  5.  A  layer  testifying  by  new  marine  de- 
posits, to  a  fresh  invasion  of  the  ocean.  6.  The 
soil  has  once  more  been  exposed  to  light,  and  debris 
of  our  own  animals,  and  of  the  implements  of  human 
industry,  indicate  the  commencement  of  the  modern 
epoch.  By  examining  in  this  manner  all  over  the 
globe  the  vestiges  of  extinct  worlds,  by  tracing  in 
various  countries  layers  of  the  same  nature  and 
date,  geologists  have  been  able  to  reconstruct  the 
map  of  Europe  as  it  was  before  the  advent  of  man- 


THE  ACTION  OF  WATER  ON  CONTINENTS.    145 

kind.  The  site  now  occupied  by  Paris  was  then 
buried  beneath  the  waters,  and  the  shape  of  the 
ancient  continents  bears  no  resemblance  to  those 
of  any  countries  now  existing. 

It  is  probable  that  we  shall  one  day  succeed  in 
solving  the  enigmas  that  conceal  from  us  the  mys- 
teries of  the  past,  while  on  the  other  hand  the  his- 
tory of  former  revolutions  on  the  face  of  the  globe, 
and  the  study  of  the  past,  may,  to  a  certain  point, 
enable  us  to  divine  the  future.  Nevertheless  we 
must  acknowledge  that  a  thousand  causes  as  yet 
unsuspected  may  destroy  the  most  beautiful  hy- 
pothesis, and  we  must  content  ourselves  with  merely 
touching  in  passing  on  a  question  which  gives  such 
wide  scope  to  the  imagination.  It  is  certain  that 
all  here  below  is  doomed  to  incessant  change.  The 
face  of  the  globe  is  for  ever  passing  through  a 
continual  metamorphosis,  and  the  oceans  of  our 
day  will  be  the  continents  of  the  future.  But 
changes  even  more  extensive  are  probably  in  store 
for  our  planet.  It  is  possible  that  the  ice  which  lies 
piled  up  at  the  north  pole  may  cause,  according  to 
the  opinion  of  Agassiz,  a  sudden  movement  in  the  axis 
of  the  earth,  and  that  by  the  changed  position  of  its 
centre  of  gravity  our  globe  may  suffer  a  terrible  shock 
which  would  cause  the  instantaneous  death  of  every 
living  being  by  causing  the  sea  to  overflow  the 
land.  Or  it  may  be  that  the  epidermis  of  the 
earth,  (which  is  after  all  nothing  more  than  a 
erust  congealed  by  the  action  of  cold,)  will  in- 
crease so  much  that  on  a  certain  day  lowered  tem- 
perature may  convert  all  the  water  on  our  sphere 


146  WATER. 

into  a  vast  mass  of  ice.  Let  it  be  added,  however, 
that  if  these  predictions  can  ever  be  reahzed,  it  will 
only  be  after  the  lapse  of  many  ages,  for  geology 
teaches  us  the  immensity  of  time  just  as  astronomy 
teaches  the  immensity  of  space.  Mankind  will  in 
the  meantime  have  had  time  to  disappear  from  the 
stage  of  the  world,  and  perhaps  give  place  to  some 
other  race  of  purer  essence. 

But,  it  will  be  said,  without  travelling  so  far  from 
the  present  epoch,  is  it  not  possible  to  ascertain 
whether  these  deluges,  which  are  not  so  far  distant 
from  us,  can  cccur  in  our  own  days  ?  Can  science 
reassure  us  on  this  subject  ?  or  must  we  live  in  a 
state  of  constant  anxiety  from  dread  of  the  possible 
encroachments  of  the  sea,  which  might  result  from 
an  earthquake  ?  Before  answering  this  question  it 
is  necessary  to  know  whether  the  revolutions  on  the 
earth's  surface  have  been  sudden  or  gradual,  and 
that  is  a  grave  question  which  has  been  the  subject 
of  eager  discussion  between  most  distinguished  sci- 
entific men.  It  is  probable  that  both  hypotheses 
are  true,  since  in  our  own  days  the  shores  of  certain 
continents  are  rising  gradually  and  progressively, 
and  in  the  course  of  ages  this  insensible  movement, 
continued  without  ceasing,  may  become  the  cause 
of  radical  changes.  On  the  other  hand,  the  rising 
of  mountains,  and  earthquakes,  must  have  before 
,  this  wrought  upon  the  face  of  the  earth  convulsions 
both  sudden  and  terrible.  When  the  chain  of  the 
Cordilleras  first  rose  as  an  immense  protuberance 
on  the  surface  of  the  globe,  the  terrestrial  epidermis 
must  have   been   violently   shaken,   and    the    sea, 


THE    ACTION  OF  WATER  ON   CONTINENTS.         147 

thrown  suddenly  out  of  its  bed,  must  have  produced 
frightful  inundations  and  terrible  deluges. 

Will  these  violent  phenomena  be  reproduced  ? 
Probably  not ;  for  the  crust  of  the.  earth,  aug- 
menting its  bulk  in  proportion  as  the  globe  grows 
colder,  in  consequence  of  radiation,  opposes  an  ob- 
stacle, ever  stronger  and  stronger,  to  the  subter- 
lanean  fires.  On  the  other  hand,  it  is  certain  that 
our  planet  is  destined  to  lose  its  oceans  and  its  at- 
mosphere, and  to  pass  gradually  into  a  condition 
similar  to  that  of  the  moon,  for  the  waters  will  be- 
come absorbed  in  proportion  as  new  rocks  are 
formed  by  the  consolidation  of  the  mass,  which  now 
is  in  a  state  of  fusion.  The  solid  surface  of  our 
planet  is  a  porous  mass,  through  which  the  water, 
insinuating  itseK  by  a  thousand  tiny  openings,  tra- 
vels slowly,  but  surely,  towards  the  centre  of  the 
earth,  and  disappears  in  proportion  as  the  vast  do- 
main of  fire  diminishes.  We  have  already  seen  that 
the  rivers  and  lakes  have  diminished  in  volume  since 
the  geologic  ages ;  it  is  very  probable,  from  the  cal- 
culations of  scientific  men,  that  the  seas  themselves 
will .  disappear  whenever  the  solid  pellicle  of  the 
earth  has  attained  a  thickness  of  about  93  miles. 
Then  the  dried-up  earth  will  behold  all  life  disap- 
pear from  its  surface ;  the  atmosphere  will  no  longer 
oppose  any  -obstacle  to  the  solar  rays ;  icy  nights 
will  succeed  burning  days,  but  our  planet  will  not 
the-  less  continue  its  course  around  the  sun,  like  a 
corpse  taken  in  tow  by  another  corpse,  till,  at  a  yet 
more  remote  time,  the  freezing  chill  will  have 
reached  the  sun  himself,  and  he  also  wiU  be  extin- 


148  .  WATEll. 

guished — cold  and  darkness  reigning  then  in  the 
midst  of  all  this  dead  world.  And  what  will  become 
of  all  these  ruins  ?  Here,  necessarily,  Science  must 
be  silent.  Whatever  we  can  do,  we  always  perceive 
in  the  future,  as  in  the  past,  a  mysterious  horizon, 
which  recedes  further  and  further  in  proportion  as 
as  we  advance,  and  which  irresistibly  attracts  our 
gaze. 

•'  We  may  laugh,  we  may  weep,  we  may  boast  of  our  power, 
But  can  ne'er  make  thee  speak  till  thine  own  fateful  hour, 

Or  compel  thee  thine  hands  to  unclasp  ; 
Oh  !  thou  phantom  so  mute — our  host  and  our  guest — 
Thou  masked  spectre,  that  haunts  us  and  leaves  us  no  rest, 
Thou,  To-morrow,  we  never  can  grasp." 

VlCTrB  HUOO. 


IV. 

THE  PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL 
PROPERTIES  OF   WATER. 


"  No  desire  is  more  natural  than  the  thirst  for  knowledge.  We  use  every 
method  which  can  be  employed  iu  our  endeavors  to  attain  it.  When  reason 
fails  us,  we  try  experimeut." — Montaigne. 


CHAPTER  I. 

WHAT  IS   WATER?    -THE  LABORATORY. 
••  We  shall  see  that,  lor  us,  water  is  no  longer  an  element."— La voisieb. 

After  having  examined  the  part  that  water  plays 
in  nature,  and  the  mission  which  it  fulfills  on  our 
globe,  let  us  pursue  our  investigations  more  closely, 
and  employ  such  apparatus  as  science  brings  to  bear 
on  the  study  of  the  substances  which  make  up  this 
wonderful  element. 

Let  us  enter  the  laboratory,  that  best  theatre  for 
the  display  of  the  facts  which  we  are  about  to  study. 
But  before  opening  the  door,  I  must  warn  you  that 
you  will  not  find  there  that  fantastic  apparatus 
which  you  are  perhaps  expecting  to  see,  and  with 
which  the  alchemists  were  in  the  habit  of  astonish- 
ing their  visitors.  The  crocodile  has  long  ceased 
to  yawn  from  the  ceiling,  and  the  broken  wind- 
bellows  no  longer  blow  up  the  glowing  furnace  with 
horrible  sounds.  The  master  has  thrown  aside  his 
long  gabardine,  and  is  no  longer  half  hid  in  a  laby- 
rinth of  dusty  tomes,  which  lay  in  disorderly  piles 
within  his  sanctuary.  Instead  of  hunting  amid  the 
inextricable  medley  of  old  books  for  the  truth  which 


152  WATER. 

is  so  rarely  found  there,  his  efforts  are  now  directed 
to  the  study  of  nature  itself,  and  to  a  search  after 
facts  by  means  of  experiments ;  and  in  this  way, 
climbing  laboriously  the  steep  path  of  methodical 
study,  he  at  length  reaches,  by  means  of  observation, 
truths  which  thus  only  can  be  discovered. 

We  shall  find  in  our  laboratory  phials  in  readi- 
ness to  receive  fluids  which  are  to  be  poured  into 
them,  glasses,  receivers,  and  retorts,  destined  to  be 
subjected  to  the  action  of  fire.  In  a  word,  vessels 
of  every  sort  will  lend  their  aid  to  the  necessities  of 
our  study.  Gas  stoves  will  be  lighted  by  the  touch 
of  a  match,  furnishing .  us  instantaneously  with  a 
high  temperature  without  the  aid  of  the  traditional 
bellows.  Machinery  will  give  us,  as  we  require 
them,  either  a  powerful  electric  current,  or  an  in- 
tense luminous  spark.  A  pneumatic  machine  will 
produce  a  vacuum,  if  we  need  one,  for  our  experi- 
ments. A  chemical  balance  will  assist  us  in  our 
analysis :  a  barometer  will  indicate  the  atmospheric 
pressure,  and  a  thermometer  and  other  instruments 
will  each  in  turn  supply  our  wants. 

Perhaps,  my  reader,  you  rather  regret  the  old 
alchemist,  with  his  strange  apparatus  and  the  dust 
which  covered  everything.  If  you  have  a  taste  for 
the  picturesque,  you  doubtless  deplore  the  absence 
of  the  ^crocodile  stuffed  with  hay,  and  you  regret 
seeing  nowhere  the  serpent,  preserved  in  spirits, 
the  stuffed  pehcan  or  the  skeleton,  and  a  thousand 
spiders'  webs — no  local  coloring  in  fact. 

Our  laboratory  has  laid  aside  all  the  charming 
mysteries  which  once  surrounded  these  studies,  but 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  153 

instead  of  speaking  confusedly  to  your  imagination, 
it  will  address  your  reason  in  clear  language. 
Science  will  no  longer  appear  to  you  half  hidden 
under  a  thick  veil,  a  perplexing  mist ;  she  has  been 
stripped  of  the  rags  which  only  disfigured  her  fair 
proportions.  This  half  light,  this  mysterious  shadow, 
which  hung  over  the  sanctuary  of  the  alchemist, 
was  nothing  less  than  superstition  casting  her  man- 
tle over  everything  ;  it  was  the  false  dominating 
over  the  true.  These  fantastic  ornaments  repre- 
sented that  element  of  the  marvellous  which  always 
surrounds  the  first  footsteps  of  science  and  retards 
its  development.  That  old  philosopher,  who  has 
for  sixty  years  been  trying  to  decipher  the  same 
musty  work  of  Black  Art  :  what  is  he  but  a  repre- 
sentative of  misdirected  science?  of  man  asking 
the  truth  of  his  fellow-man,  who  is  as  ignorant  as 
he  himself,  instead  of  sitting  down  to  learn  it  at 
the  feet  of  nature,  which  conceals  it  indeed,  but 
will  assuredly  reveal  it  to  the  patient  seeker. 

Our  laboratory,  clean,  well  lighted  and  orderly,  is 
naught  else  but  modern  Science,  simple,  accurate, 
stripped  of*unintelligible  jargon,  of  repulsive  aspect, 
offering  to  all,  the  secrets  she  formerly  kept  for 
the  initiated  few.  She  is  no  longer  in  love  with 
abstract  terms,  with  mysterious  and  high  sounding 
phrases,  with  formulas  bristling  with  hard  words ; 
she  has  torn  off  all  these  trappings  and  addresses 
herself  to  all,  and  aims  at  being  understood  by  all. 

The  days  have  gone  by,  when  the  question : 
What  is  water  ?  could  be  answered  by  the  simple 
words  :  It  is  an  element !     We  have  already  seen 


154  WATER. 

how  many  generations  of  men  were  content  with 
such  a  reply,  and  yet  how  utterly  erroneous  it  really 
is  ;  still,  till  down  to  the  middle  of  the  last  century 
this  view  prevailed  almost  universally.  The  great 
philosopher,  Thales,  six  hundred  years  before  Christ, 
looked  upon  water  as  the  only  genuine  element, 
from  which  all  life  upon  earth  was  derived,  and 
after  Aristotle,  some  three  hundred  years  later,  con- 
firmed this  view,  the  doctrine  was  blindly  adhered 
to  for  twenty  centuries.  Diodorus  even  believed  that 
water  could  be  condensed  into  an  earthy  matter,  and 
considered  crystals  as  such  petrified  water.  Other 
naturalists  looked  upon  quartz  in  the  same  light, 
and  firmly  believed  the  change  possible.  Even  in 
1750  alchemists  Were  still  eagerly  at  work  to  force 
water,  by  constantly  grinding  it  in  a  mortar,  to  form 
a  deposit  of  earthy  matter !  The  great  Newton  and 
the  acute  Leibnitz  shared  this  opinion,  and  the  few 
who  dared  to  doubt  fared  badly  with  learned  men. 
It  was  finally  due  to  the  experiments  made  by  Cav- 
endish (1766),  Volta  (1777),  and  Lavoisier  (1781) 
that  the  true  nature  of  water  was  discovered. 

What  then  is  water  ?  To  learn  this,  1^  us  begin 
by  decomposing  water — that  is  to  say,  by  submitting 
it  to  analysis. 


ANALYSIS  AND  SYNTHESIS. 

Here  is  a  glass  vessel,  and  a  voltaic  battery  ;  wo 
will  fiH  the  former  with  water,  slightly  acidified  with 
sulphuric  acid.  By  the  aid  of  a  galvanic  pile  we 
pass  through  it  an  electric  current,  conducted  by 
two  platinum  rods  (or  wires)  which  traverse  the  mas- 


i>HYSICAL   AND   CHEMICAL   PROPERTIES. 


155 


tii  oottom  with  which  our  apparatus  is  furnished. 
Thus  the  water  is  decomposed  and  the  wires  are  im- 
mediately covered  with  httle  gaseous  beads,  to  which 
the  water  has  given  birth.  How  can  we  collect  and 
examine  these  gases  ?  Nothing  more  simple.  We 
place  in  the  basin  above  the  platinum  wires  two 
Uttle  test  glasses  which  soon  become  filled  with  gas, 
and  we  observe  that  the  volume  of  gas  which  es- 
capes from  the  rod  corresponding  with  the  negative 


IS-4^.=_^..^..-.;.ai 


jm 


Decomposing  Water  by  a  Voltaic  Battery. 

pole  of  the  pile  is  twice  the  amount  of  that  of  the 
other  gas  issuing  from  the  positive  pole.  If  we  re- 
move the  first  test  glass  from  the  voltaic  battery 
and  then  apply  a  lighted  match  to  its  orifice,  the  gas 
it  contains  becomes  immediately  ignited,  with  a 
slight  detonating  sound. 

If  we  plunge  into  the  second  test-glass  a  match, 
so  nearly  extinguished  as  to  offer  a  simple  in- 
candescent point,  it   is  immediately  relighted  and 


156 


WATER. 


burns  brightly.     The  gas  it  contains,  though  not  it- 
self inflammable,  can  yet  produce  combustion. 

In  this  experiment  we  have  decomposed  water, — 
and  have  extracted  from  it  two  distinct  gases,  one 
of  which  burns  with  a  dull  flame,  that  is  hydrogen — 
whilst  the  other,  which  does  not  take  fire,  but  ex- 
cites combustion,  is  called  oxygen.  Water  can  by 
various  other  means  also  be  decomposed.  If  we 
pour  into  a  flask  with  two  tubular  orifices,  contain- 
ing zinc,  water  mixed  with  sulphuric  acid,  the  zinc, 


Decomposition  of  Water  by  Zinc  and  Sulphuric  Acid. 

under  the  influence  of  the  acid,  takes  up  one  of  its 
elements,  oxygen,  and  the  hydrogen  thus  set  at  lib- 
erty can  be  collected  in  the  test-glass.  The  other 
constituent  of  water,  oxygen,  can  be  produced 
by  heating  in  a  retort  chlorate  of  potash  with  bin- 
oxide  of  manganese.  Oxygen  is  thus  very  easily 
obtained  so  as  to  enable  us  to  study  its  properties. 
This  gas,  as  we  have  seen,  can  maintain  combus- 
tion ;  sulphur  and  phosphorus  burn  in  it  much  more 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL   PROPERTIES.  157 

freely  tliau  in  the  air   and  if  a  piece  of  tinder  fas- 
9 


.LAPLANtL  jljA/MNfllf.' 

Preparation  of  Oxygeu. 


tened  to   a  steel  spring  is  set   on  fire,  we  see  the 


1 

y ' 

, .  I 

-  ^^':!'^:Ts^<;  !| 

^^^=?=^-'^'  "^^^ 

=l?.S^==3===^;^^.^=si  ^^S 

Combustiou  of  Steel  in  Oxygen. 


168 


WATER. 


metal  burning  with  great  brilliancy,  numerous  bright 
sparks  escaping  from  the  incandescent  steel.  Other 
metals,  such  as  iron,  decompose  water  by  their 
mere  contact ;  but  they  have  to  be  heated  to  a  red 


Decomposition  of  Water  by  Hot  Iron. 

heat.  If  we  introduce  steam  into  a  tube  filled  with 
iron  rods  heated  by  gas-burners,  the  water  becomes 
decomposed  by  contact  with  the  incandescent  metal, 
and  the  oxygen  becomes  solid  in  the  form  of  oxide 
of  iron.  Meanwhile  the  hydrogen  becomes  elimin- 
ated, and  passes  through  a  tube  into  a  test-glass 
placed  in  a  basin  filled  with  water.  This  process  of 
decomposition  may  be  thus  represented : 


Water   \  Hydrogen Hydrogen. 

I  Oxygen 


Iron f  Oxyde  of  iron. 

Chlorine,  a  greenish   yellow  gas,  also   decomposes 
water  by  the  aid  of  a  high  temperature,  but  it  com- 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  15  ^ 

bines  with  the  hydrogen  and  sets  the  oxygen  at  lib- 
erty. The  decomposition  is  effected  in  an  earthen- 
ware tube,  filled  with  pumice  stone,  made  red-hot 
in  a  furnace.  The  chlorine  is  produced  in  a  glass 
receiver  of  a  spherical  form  containing  peroxyde  of 
manganese  and  chlorohydric  acid ;  it  passes  througli 
a  glass  retort  containing  water  heated  to  boiling. 
Chlorine  and. steam  pass  through  a  column  of  pu- 
mice stone  made  red  hot — the  hydrogen  of  the  wa- 
ter combines  wdth  the  chlorine  and  gives  as  its  re- 
sult chlorohydric  acid,  which  passes  with  the 
isolated  oxygen  to  an  earthen  pan  filled  with  water, 
into  which  a  test-glass  is  plunged.  The  chlorohy- 
dric acid  becomes  dissolved  in  the  water ;  the  oxy- 
gen, which  is  scarcely  solvable,  fills  the  test-glass. 

We  have  thus  decomposed  and  analyzed  water, 
which  is  not,  as  the  ancients  believed,  a  simple  body, 
an  element,  but,  on  the  contrary,  consists  of  two 
distinct  elements.  Till  now  we  have  been  content 
to  destroy ;  we  may  be  compared  to  children  who 
break  their  toys  to  see  what  is  inside,  but  can  the 
fragments  be  reunited  in  our  hands  ?  Can  we  make 
artificial  water  out  of  oxygen  and  hydrogen  ?  Noth- 
ing is  simpler. 

The  illustration  (see  next  page)  shows  us  an  ap- 
paratus by  means  of  which  this  problem  can  be 
solved.  A  flask  with  two  tubular  orifices  contains  the 
combination  which  produces  hydrogen ;  the  gas  is 
disengaged  and  passes  into  a  test-glass,  furnished 
with  a  foot,  through  pieces  of  chloride  of  lime — 
it  eliminates  itself  at  the  extremity  of  a  bent  tube, 
where  it  is  set  on  fire.     A  bell  glass  is  then  placed 


160 


WATER. 


beneath  the  flame  and  soon  becomes  covered  with 
a  cloud  of  steam ;  a  few  drops  next  trickle  down  its 
sides  and  fall  into  a  vessel  beneath.  This  liquid  is 
nothing  less  than  water  artificially  produced.  The 
hydrogen,  as  it  burns  in  the  air,  unites  with  the  at- 
mospheric oxygen,  and  together  they  produce  water. 
We  have  thus  made  the  syntJiesis  of  water. 


Formation  of  Water  by  burning  hydrogen. 

Can  anything  be  simpler  than  these  experiments, 
in  which  the  nature  of  water  shows  itself  with  clear- 
ness and  with  certainty  ?  And  yet  it  has  taken  cen- 
turies to  arrive  at  this  point,  and  the  doctrine  of 
the  four  elements  maintained  itself  age  after  age, 
till  it  was  demolished  as  rc^cently  as  the  days  of 
Lavoisier,  less  tlian  a  hundred  years  ago.  The 
fact  is,  the  method  of  arriving  at  truth  by   experi- 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  161 

inent  has  only  very  recently  been  taught  mankind 
by  those  gifted  pioneers  of  modem  science,  Bacon, 
Descartes,  GaHleo,  Newton.  More  than  three  ,cen- 
turies  have  elapsed  since  the  earhest  of  these  mighty 
masters  first  threw  open  the  gates,  which  were  to 
make  the  highways  of  so  extended  a  sphere  ot 
knowledge  accessible  to  our  race.  Previously  to 
that  period  human  thought  had  been  hemmed  in 
between  narrow  barriers ;  men  were  accustomed  to 
think  only  as  earlier,  and  in  their  eyes  infallible, 
guides  had  thought  before  them,  and  the  most  con- 
vincing experiments  failed  to  carry  conviction  to 
the  minds  of  the  multitude.  The  opinion  of  Aris- 
totle on  the  subject  of  the  four  elements  was  to  the 
ancients  as  indisputable  a  truth  as  any  axiom  in 
mathematics,  and  no  one  dared  even  to  discuss  the 
conclusions  at  which  the  illustrious  tutor  of  Alexan- 
der had  arrived.  The  injurious  effects  of  this  blind 
adherence  to  his  views  necessarily  impaired  free 
thought  and  prevented  all  progress  in  science,  which 
was  forced  to  follow  forever  the  beaten  track  first 
marked  out  for  her  by  the  Stagyrite,  It  is  needless 
to  dwell  on  the  inconvenience  of  so  circumscribed  a 
method  of  studying  nature.  In  her  domains  nothing 
is  speculative,  nothing  is  true  but  what  can  be  dem- 
onstrated, and  experiment  must  always  come  for- 
ward to  confirm  theory. 

Chemistry,  in  thus  dissecting  substances  aims  at 
unveihng  the  constituent  parts,  at  penetrating  into 
these  mysteries  which  matter,  whether  inert  or  or- 
ganized, conceals  from  our  view,  and  at  ascertaining 
their  true  nature.     She  commences  by  destroying, 


162  WATER. 

but  only  in  order  to  reconstruct — she  separates  the 
elements  in  order  to  combine  them  once  more,  and 
thus  destroys  in  order  to  create  anew. 

Looking  upon  that  infinity  of  living  beings,  of  in- 
ert bodies,  which  cover  the  surface  of  the  globe,  of 
plants  of  every  description,  of  animals  of  endless 
variety,  of  mineral  substances  of   every  kind,  one 
might  feel  tempted  to  believe  that  an  endless  num- 
ber of  distinct  elements  composed  this  vast  array  of 
bodies  and  substances.     But  such  is  not  the  case. 
If  we  analyze  all  the  substances  in  nature,  if  we 
pass  through  the  crucible  of  science  trees  and  ani- 
mals, stones  and  rocks,  water  and  air,  we  reach  after 
all  only  a  small  number  of  elements,  which  united 
by  twos,  by  threes,  by  fours,  form  the  infinite  variety 
of  objects  which  constitute  the  magnificent  specta- 
cle called  the  Universe.   The  air  we  breathe  is  formed 
by  the  union  of  two  gases,  nitrogen  and  oxygen ; 
water  consists  of  one  of  the  gases  of  air,  united  to 
another  gas,  hydrogen  ;  vegetable  and  animal  sub- 
stances are  again  formed  of  hydrogen,  oxygen  and 
nitrogen,  combined  with  a  third  substance,  carbon.   If 
we  add  to  these  elements  sulphur,  phosphorus,  po- 
tassium, sodium,  aluminum,  calcium,  silicum,  iron, 
and  a  few  others,  we  have  the  complete  list  of  bodies 
which  by  their  union  form  the  whole  series  of  beings, 
living  or  inanimate. 

Wheat  and  hemlock,  food  and  poison,  consist  of  the 
same  primal  elements ;  animals  and  plants  nearly 
all  contain  the  same  fundamental  substances,  and  it 
may  be  said,  speaking  generally,  that  64  bodies  have 
given  birth  to  the  universe  and  all  that  is  therein. 


PHYSICAL  AND  CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  163 

It  is  possible,  if  not  probable,  that  what  we  call 
elements,  are  not  primal  elements  of  nature.  The 
day  may  come,  perchance,  when  science  will  subdi- 
vide our  so  called  simple  substances  as  we  are  now 
dividing  water,  which  the  ancients  considered  an 
element,  into  oxygen  and  hydrogen.  The  chemistry 
of  the  future  will  proclaim,  perhaps,  as  an  obvious 
truth,  the  unity  of  all  matter,  modifying  and  trans- 
forming itself  incessantly  under  the  unwearying 
play  of  physical  forces.  However  that  may  be,  with 
our  present  appliances,  we  have  a  vast  field  for  our 
wonder  and  our  curiosity  in  the  constant  metamor- 
phoses of  matter ;  and  nature,  to  use  the  language  of 
a  profound  philosopher,  seems  to  us  like  a  self-de- 
vouring monster ;  for  in  this  unending  bringing  forth 
of  new  beings,  matter  is  constantly  modified,  trans- 
formed, and  metamorphosed,  while  ever  revolving  in 
a  circle  alike  wondrous  and  sublime. 

There  is,  however,  nothing  so  very  astonishing  in 
the  diversity  of  beings  produced  by  a  few  elements. 
The  disposal  of  the  arrangement  of  the  various 
atoms  is  the  sole  cause  of  this  diversity.  The  dia- 
mond and  the  coal,  the  precious  stones  and  worth- 
less clays,  Iceland  spar  and  common  building-stone, 
all  have  the  same  chemical  composition  and  yet  pre- 
sent as  much  diversity  of  appearance  as  exists  be- 
tween an  animal  and  a  plant. 

Are  not  the  twenty-six  letters  of  our  alphabet  suf- 
ficient to  produce  an  infinity  of  words,  which  paint 
every  shade  of  human  thought  ?  The  primitive  ele- 
ments are  the  letters  in  Nature's  alphabet.  Living 
beings  and  inert  bodies  may  be  considered  as  the 


164  WATER. 

words  in  that  great  book  of  Nature,  which  strikes 
our  imagination  and  speaks  to  our  reason  by  its 
sublime  language  and  the  grandeur  of  its  style. 

So  is  it  with  the  eight  notes  of  music,  which  by 
their  combination  produce  every  harmony  that  can 
charm  the  ear,  and  with  the  seven  colors  of  the 
rainbow,  which  produce  every  tint  in  earth  or  sky. 


THE  COMPOSITION  OF  WATEK. 
We  have  found  water  to  consist  of  oxygen  and 
hydrogen,  but  in  what  proportion   are  these  two 


Mercurial  Eudiometer. 


gases  united  ?  That  is  the  question  on  which  we 
are  now  about  to  enter.  We  introduce  into  a  eu- 
diometer plunged  into  a  mercury  bath  tw^o  volumes 
of  oxygen,  and  two  of  hydrogen ;  by  means  of  an 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES. 


1G5 


electric  machine  we 
cause  an  electric  spark 
to  pass  into  the  mixture 
of  the  two  gases;  thej 
unite  and  form  water, 
which  becomes  con- 
densed and  causes  in 
the  apparatus  a  vacuum 
immediately  filled  by 
the  mercury.  After  the 
experiment  there  re- 
mains in  the  eudiometer 
one  volume  of  oxygen, 
and  hence  we  conclude 
that  two  volumes  of 
hydrogen  have  com- 
bined with  one  of  oxy- 
gen in  order  to  form 
water.  This  result  may 
be  verified  by  a  cele- 
brated experiment,  due 
to  Mr.  Dumas,  by  means 
of  an  apparatus  repre- 
sented on  this  page,  and 
the  principle  of  which 
we  shall  content  our- 
selves with  describing. 
A  current  of  pure  hy- 
drogen passes  over  an- 
ascertained  weight  of 
oxide  of  copper  held  in 
a  special  glass  receiver, 


166  WATEB. 

A.  The  oxide  of  copper  becomes  reduced — 
that  is  to  say,  its  oxygen  unites  with  hydrogen  to 
form  water,  which  water  is  condensed  in  the  glass 
receiver  B.  In  weighing  the  reduced  copper  after 
the  experiment,  we  obtain  the  weight  of  the  oxygen 
combined  with  an  equally  well  known  weight  of 
water,  that  is  to  say,  we  have  by  ascertaining  the 
difference,  the  weight  of  hydrogen  contained  in  the 
water.  These  investigations  have  proved  that  nine 
parts  of  water  consist  of  eight  parts  of  oxygen  and 
one  of  hydrogen. 

The  composition  of  water  may  thus  be  described 
in  a  couple  of  lines,  but  what  a  long  array  of  cen- 
turies, what  an  army  of  pioneers  passed  away, 
before  these  simple  facts  became  known  to  mankind ! 
Cavendish,  Lemery,  Lavoisier,  Volta,  Humboldt, 
Gay  Lussac,  Dumas,  each  were  the  intellectual 
laborers,  whose  persevering  and  incessant  toil  was 
needed  to  reveal  to  us  the  nature  of  water.  What 
labor,  what  disappointments,  what  doubts,  but  also 
what  joy  "and  what  triumph  !  What  ineffable  hap- 
piness a  single  conquest  in  the  material  world 
brings !  What  a  glorious  victory  is  that  achieved 
by  the  patient  seeker,  who,  after  innumerable  days 
of  hard  work,  and  nights  of  watchfulness,  succeeds 
at  length  in  lifting  the  veil  which  conceals  a  new 
truth ! 

Two  gases,  oxygen  and  hydrogen,  are  they 
reaUy  all  that  is  needed  to  produce  water  ?  Water, 
when  chemically  pure,  certainly  contains  nothing  else  ; 
but  pure  water  does  not  exist  in  nature.  The  water 
of  springs  and  rivers  dissolves  salts  and,  little   by 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  167 

little,  melts  away  the  rocks  which  it  meets  in  its 
course — it  dissolves  the  gases  of  the  air,  oxygen, 
nitrogen  and  carbonic  acid — it  contains  common  salt, 
sulphate  of  lime,  and  calcareous  matter — in  one 
word,  it  contains  all  that  is  soluble  upon  earth. 


CHAPTEE  n. 

THE  INFLUENCE  OF  HEAT — EBULLITION. 

Heat  acts  upon  the  majority  of  bodies,  and 
usually  changes  their  form,  that  is  to  say,  it  melts 
solids  and  causes  liquids  to  evaporate.  Water 
comes  before  us  under  three  aspects,  solid,  liquid 
and  gas  ;  heat  melts  ice  and  causes  it  to  pass  into 
the  form  of  water,  and  again  it  volatilizes  water  and 
causes  it  to  pass  into  the  form  of  steam. 

In  order  that  we  may  better  understand  the  action 
and  effect  of  heat,  we  warm  some  water  in  a  glass 
vessel,  and  then  plunge  into  it  a  thermometer 
to  indicate  its  temperature.  The  thermometer 
rises  gradually  until  the  water  reaches  the  boiling 
point.  It  is  then  at  212°,  but  from  that  mo- 
ment ceases  to  rise.  Yet  the  fire  furnishes  still 
the  same  amount  of  heat.  What  becomes  of  this 
heat?  It  is  concealed,  absorbed  by  the  liquid. 
Heat  is  a  force  which  displaces  the  molecules  of 
water,  causes  them  to  pass  into  the  gaseous  state, 
and  while  engaged  in  this  task  it  is  insensible  to  the 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL   PROPERTIES.  169 

thermometer.  As  long  as  water  is  thus  volatilized 
it  does  not  become  warmer. 

We  see  thus  that  water  expands  under  the  in- 
fluence of  heat  so  enormously  as  to  assume  the 
shape  of  air,  and  yet  it  is  in  this  almost  invisible 
form  that  it  exercises  its  power  with  greatest  vio- 
lence and  pitiless  passion— tearing  open  the  surface 
of  our  earth,  causing  huge  craters  to  sink  in  or  new 
mountains  to  rise  from  the  bosom  of  the  sea,  shak- 
ing whole  kingdoms  by  terrible  earthquakes,  and 
destroying  in  a  few  hours  the  lives  of  many  thousands. 
If  such  are  the  fearful  effects  of  a  sudden  conversion 
of  water  into  vapor,  the  gradual  transition  produces 
not  less  striking  effects.  To  it  we  owe  the  protect- 
ing canopy  of  clouds  that  shelters  us  from  the  de- 
stroying heat  of  the  sun,  to  it,  thunder  storms  and 
hail  storms,  indeed  the  almost  endless  series  of 
continual  changes  in  the  world  around  us,  which 
add  to  its  beauty  and  please  the  eye,  while  they 
give  food  to  the  mind,  and  cause  us  to  admire  the 
great  Maker  of  all,  who  directs  these  agencies  and 
makes  them  subservient  to  His  will. 

Water  does  not  boil  at  the  ordinary  temperature 
when  it  is  in  contact  with  the  air,  because  this  air 
weighs  heavily  on  all  objects  on  the  surface  of  the 
earth ;  it  weighs  heavily  also  upon  the  water,  and  to 
some  extent  compresses  the  molecules  of  this  liquid, 
so  as  to  prevent  their  separating  and  passing  from 
the  fluid  into  the  gaseous  state. 

Let  us  take  a  spherical  glass  receiver  full  of 
water ;  let  us  form  a  vacuum  with  the  aid  of  an 
Lidia  rubber  tube,  fastened  to  our  pneumatic  ma- 


170 


WATER. 


chine.  The  water  boils  up  at  once  and  is  changed 
into  steam,  simply  because  the  air  has  been  driven 
out  and  no  longer  opposes  any  obstacle  to  this  trans- 
formation. 

When  the  barometer  marks  29^  inches  of  pres- 
sure, water  boils  at  a  uniform  temperature,  and 
it  is  the  same  with  all  liquids.     The  boiling  point  of 


Ebullition  of  Water  iu  a  Vacuum. 

water  under  a  pressure  of  29^  inches,  has  served, 
as  is  well  known,  as  a  terra  of  comparison ;  it  is  the 
hundredth  degree  of  the  centigrade  thermometer.  If 
the  pressure  on  the  contrary  is  not  uniform  but 
varying,  if  it  is  increased  or  diminished,  the  boiling 
pomt  rises  or  falls  in  the  same  proportion.  When 
the  pressure  increases  water  boils  only  at  a  tempera- 
ture above  212°  F. 


PHYSICAL   AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  171 

There  is  a  weU  known  apparatus,  which  was 
invented  by  Denis  Papin.  It  is  a  close  copper 
vessel  half  filled  with  water  and  then  heated.  The 
steam  which  is  produced,  finding  no  issue,  com- 
presses the  water  and  prevents  its  boiling  at  212°  F  ; 
it  is  thus  possible  to  keep  water  still  hquid  at  a 
temperature  of  from  392°  to  572°  F. 

If  two  pounds  of  mercury,  at  212°,  be  mixed  with 
two  of  water,  at  32°,  the  mixture  will  be  foimd 
to  have  a  temperature  of  37° ;  the  degree  of  heat 
which  maintained  the  mercury  at  a  temperature  of 
212°,  heats  the  water  only  up  to  37°  ;  this  hquid  has 
therefore  "  a  great  capacity  for  retaining  heat." 

This  explains  why  islands  and  countries  sur- 
rounded with  water  have  a  temperate  cUmate,  and 
enjoy  a  nearly  uniform  temperature  ;  in  summer  the 
water  of  the  sea  lays  up  the  heat  of  the  sun — ab- 
sorbs a  large  amount  of  it — and  thus  softens  the 
rigor  of  the  winter  ;  this  is  why  the  Gulf  Stream — 
a  long  distance  away  from  its  hot  birthplace — is 
still  warm  when  it  reaches  the  polar  ice. 

When  steam  cools  off,  when  it  loses  the  heat  that 
has  volatilized  it,  it  returns  to  the  liquid  state.  We 
boil  some  water  in  a  retort,  furnished  with  a  long 
glass  neck,  and  a  receiver.  The  steam  set  free, 
cools  off  in  the  receiver,  and  condenses  into  the 
liquid  state ;  but  in  taking  the  form  of  gas  it  gives 
off  all  the  substances  which  it  held  in  solution,  and 
returns  thus  to  a  state  of  purity.  Hence  it  is  that 
the  vapors  which  escape  from  the  sea  form  pure 
water  in  the  clouds. 

The  operation  we  have  just  described  is  distillation, 


175i 


WATER. 


and  chemists  frequently  employ  a  distilling  appa- 
ratus when  they  wish  to  obtain  pure  water.  The 
process  of  distillation  was  well  known  to  the  ancients, 
particularly  to  Aristotle,  who  says,  "Sea-water  is 
rendered  wholesome  for  drink  by  boiling,  and  all 


^^MMiy£A       "- 


Distilling  Apparatus. 


liquids,  after  having  been  transformed  into  steam, 
can  return  to  the  liquid  state. "^"  But  the  accom- 
plished tutor  of  Alexander  stopped  at  this  statement, 
and  did  not  think  of  inventing  a  distilhng  apparatus. 
Three  centuries  later,  Pliny  described  a  process  by 
which  resin  might  be  distilled.  He  heated  this 
substance  in  a  pot  with  an  orifice,  over  which  was 
a  covering  of  wool.  The  vapor  became  condensed 
fn  the  porous  stopper,  and  after  the  experiment,  no- 


•See  Aristotle,  on  Meteorology. 


PHYSICAL  AND  CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.     173 

thing  was  needed  but  to  squeeze  the  wool,  which 
was  found  saturated  with  oil. 

Now,  when  we  wish  to  obtain  distilled  water  in 
large  quantities,  the  following  apparatus  is  em- 
ployed. A  copper  cauldron  contains  the  hquid 
which  is  to  be  distilled ;  it  is  capped  by  a  glass 
head,  a  movable  part  of  the  machine,  which 
forms  a  kind  of  retort.  The  neck  is  connected  with 
a  bent  tube,  called  a  serpentine,  which  passes 
through  a  vessel  of  cold  water,  or  cooler,  intended 
to  condense  the  vapor,  into  which  cold  water  is 
introduce ci  at  the  lower  part,  whilst  the  hot  water 
escapes  through  the  upper  part,  and  may  be  made 
use  of  to  feed  the  cauldron. 

The  first  portions  of  the  condensed  vapor  are  of 
no  use ;  they  contain  the  gases  held  in  solution  by 
the  water ;  those  that  are  collected  afterwards  are 
pure.  This  apparatus  proves  that  steam,  while  con- 
densing, throws  off  heat.  This  explains  how  it  is 
that  a  cloud,  when  condensing  to  form  rain,  pro- 
duces heat,  and  it  may  with  truth  be  said  that  it 
transports  the  solar  rays  of  the  tropics  to  coid 
countries. 


CHAPTER  III. 

INFLUENCE  OF   COLD. — AN   EXCEPTION   TO   THE   LAWS 
OP  NATURE. 

"We  here  detect  nature  in  the  act  of  making  a  halt  in  her  accustomed 
march,  and  of  reversing  her  ordinary  habits." — Tyndall. 

When  a  body  is  heated,  whether  it  be  solid, 
liquid,  or  gaseous,  its  volume  increases — it  expands  ; 
whereas,  when  it  is  cooled  off,  its  bulk  diminishes — 
it  contracts. 

Let  us  chill,  at  the  same  time,  three  spherical  glass 
receivers,  A,  B,  C ;  the  first  of  which  contains  mer- 
cury, the  second,  water,  and  the  third,  alcohol ;  let 
us  plunge  them  all  in  the  same  vessel,  which  we  have 
filled  with  water,  and  into  which  we  will  throw  pieces 
of  ice.  Let  us  begin  by  noting  the  temperature 
by  means  of  a  thermometer,  starting  at  59°  ;  the 
three  liquids  will  become  cold,  their  level  will  per- 
ceptibly sink  lower  and  lower,  and  the  phenomenon 
will  continue,  in  all  alike,  till  the  thermometer  has 
reached  39° ;  but  at  this  temperature  of  39°  water 
ceases  to  act  like  the  two  other  liquids ;  for,  while 
they  continue  to  contract,  water,  on  the  contrary, 
expands,  and  its  level  continues  to  rise  in  the  tube. 


PHYSICAL   AND   CHEMICAL   PROPERTIES. 


175 


At  a  temperature  of  39°,  therefore,  water  ceases  to 
contract ;  at  39°  it  lias  reached  its  minimum  bulk,  or, 
in  other  words,  its  maximum  density  ;  its  molecules 
have  drawn  closer  to  each  other,  and  it  has  become 
heavier.  Below  39°  it  expands  more  and  more,  till 
at  last  it  congeals  and  solidifies.  As  soon  as  it  be- 
comes ice  its  expansion  is  sudden  and  considerable. 
This  fact  at  first  seems  a  singular  anomaly,  which 
does  not  at  once  strike  us  as  remarkably  interest- 
ing ;  but  we  shall  see,  presently,  that  this  property 
is  of  an  exceptional  importance  in  the  economy  of 
nature. 


Maximum  Density  of  Water. 

Let  us,  for  instance,  examine  what  occurs  in  a 
lake,  exposed  to  the  cold  of  winter.  The  surface  of 
the  water  cools  and  contracts  down  to  39°.  At 
that  point  it  becomes  heaviest,  and  sinks  from 
the  excess  of  its  weight,  and  is  replaced  by  lower 


176  WATER. 

and  less  heavy  layers.  These  new  liqiTid  strata, 
coming  in  contact  with  the  icy  atmosphere,  speedily 
attain,  also,  a  temperature  of  39°  ;  they  fall  in  their 
turn,  and  so,  in  succession,  until  the  moment  when 
the  entire  lake  has  reached  the  same  temperature 
of  39°. 

The  upper  strata  continue  subject  to  the  influence 
of  cold ;  but  below  39°  they  increase  in  volume,  be- 
come lighter  and  lighter,  and  remain  on  the  surface 
of  the  lake.  At  32°  they  become  congealed  and  the 
ice  floats  upon  a  mass  of  water  of  a  temperature  of 
39°,  which  is  sufficiently  high  for  the  living  creatures 
which  it  contains,  to  prolong  their  existence.  Were 
it  otherwise,  if  water  like  all  other  bodies  diminished 
its  bulk  down  to  32°,  the  ice,  becoming  heavier,  would 
sink  to  the  bottom  and  there  form  a  solid  mass  per- 
petually increasing  in  thickness  through  all  the  win- 
ter months.  At  length  a  moment  would  come  when 
all  the  great  reservoirs  of  water  in  nature  would  be 
frozen,  and  the  consequence  of  this  entire  solidifi- 
cation would  be  the  instant  death  of  every  living 
creature  which  finds  here  the  conditions  of  its  exist- 
ence. Rivers  and  water-courses  would  present  to  us, 
during  severe  winters,  the  appearance  of  enormous 
veins,  hard  frozen,  and  causing  by  their  complete 
sohdification  the  most  deplorable  disasters.  To 
avoid  this,  when  the  peril  is  most  imminent,  nature 
obliges  the  water  to  expand  under  the  influence  of 
cold  ;  hence  the  ice  soon  floats  upon  the  rivers,  cov- 
ering them  with  a  protecting  mantle  which  shelters 
the  living  creatures  and  screens  them  beneath  its 
kindly  folds. 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  177 

The  expansion  of  water  by  freezing  produces  an 
irresistible  force,  capable  of  breaking  the  most  solid 
substances,  and  hence  we  derive  our  popular  expres- 
sion, "It  freezes  hard  enough  to  split  stones." 
We  take  a  tube  of  welded  iron  or  a  common  gun 
barrel,  fill  i  fc  with  water  and  stop  it  up  hermetically 
by  means  of  a  firmly  fixed  screw.  If  it  is  then 
placed  in  a  freezing  mixture  of  pounded  ice  and 
common  kitchen  salt,  the  water  in  it  will  soon  sink 
to  a  temperature  of  39°,  when  contraction  ceases.  It 
goes  down  to  37°,  35°,  34°  and  32°,  and  meanwhile  its 
bulk  increases.  It  passes  slowly  from  the  liquid  to 
the  soHd  state.  In  order  to  effect  this  molecular 
change,  it  requires  more  space  than  its  narrow  prison 
affords,  and  the  iron  tube  refuses  to  yield.  But  we 
find  that  it  cannot  be  held  by  the  iron  walls  which 
seek  to  confine  it.  It  reaches  a  temperature  of  32° 
and  congelation  is  inevitable.  The  water  bursts  its 
iron  walls ;  the  liquid  atoms  have  acquired  irresist- 
ible strength,  and  nothing  can  any  longer  withstand 
its  molecular  force.  The  tube  flies  into  pieces  un- 
der the  play  of  the  tiny  icy  crystals.  If  we  increase 
the  resistance,  if  we  imprison  the  water  in  a  cast 
iron  cannon,  in  a  mortar,  a  shell,  the  effects  will  be 
exactly  the  same.  The  resistant  force  of  the  metal 
will  be  utterly  impotent  m  this  struggle  against 
atomic  force,  which  has  been  estimated  to  reach  a 
pressure  of  not  less  than  1,000  atmospheres. 

This  explains  how  it  is  that  during  winter  our 
metal  pipes  are  burst  by  the  frost.  The  ice  breaks 
the  pipes,  and  when  the  thaw  comes  on,  the  water 
trickles  through  cracks  opened  by  the  tiny  ice  crys- 


178  WATER. 

tals.  This  is  also  what  makes  flowers  and  vegeta- 
bles unable  to  resist  the  action  of  frost.  The  sap 
which  circulates  through  stems  and  branches  speed- 
ily soUdifies.  It  increases  in  bulk  and  soon  breaks 
its  frail  covering,  dealing  at  the  same  time  a  death 
blow  to  the  plant  to  which  hitherto  it  has  given  life. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

ICE — THE  ARCHITECTURE  OF  ATOMS. 


"  This  block  of  ice  does  not  appear  at  first  sight  to  be  more  interesting  than 
a  block  of  glass,  but  to  the  enlightened  mind  of  the  philosopher,  ice  is  to 
glass  what  an  oratorio  of  Handel's  is  to  the  cries  of  the  market  and  the  street. 
Ice  is  as  music,  glass  as  the  mere  noise  ;  ice  is  order,  glass  confusion.  In  the 
formation  of  ice,  molecular  forces  have  learned  the  art  of  weaving  a  regalar 
embroidery. ' '— Tyndall. 

There  are  coarse  yet  showy  works  of  art,  which 
at  the  first  glance  attract  our  admiration,  but  do  not 
bear  close  inspection.  Others  again,  like  the  carv- 
ings of  a  Cellini,  have  to  be  examined  closely  to  be 
enjoyed.  In  examining  the  details  of  such  a  work, 
we  find  that  the  smallest  portions  of  it  have  been 
wrought  by  a  master's  hand,  and  that  the  least  prom- 
inent parts,  even,  have  received  most  careful  atten- 
tion ;  we  discover  everywhere  traces  of  a  conscien- 
tious artist  in  love  with  his  work.  But  the  hand  of 
Nature  is  far  more  skillful  yet,  and  delights  in  elab- 
orating the  most  insignificant  details  of  her  work 
with  matchless  art.  Our  eye  is  unable  to  follow  her 
into  these  minute  details,  and  some  of  her  loveliest 
masterpieces  can  only  be  seen  with  the  help  of  a 


180  WATEll. 

microscope.  But  even  the  microscope  only  reveals 
to  us  the  outward  form.  The  secret  of  her  handi- 
work is  as  yet  unfathomed.  Science  has  not  yet 
taught  us  how  it  is  that  the  mutual  friction  of  gas- 
eous vapor-bubbles  produces  electric  sparks;  nor 
can  it  tell  us  why  the  same  tiny  bubbles,  suddenly 
cooling  off,  assume  the  form  of  a  snowflake  or 
change  into  ice.  The  beautiful  snowflake,  as  it  falls 
silently  from  the  darkling  sky,  is  a  mystery  still,  and 
the  countless  particles  of  ice,  which  sparkle  in  the  cold 
winter  air,  betray  the  working  of  powers  which  have 
not  yet  been  revealed  to  our  knowledge.  Nothing  is 
more  insignificant  than  the  diminutive  dust  of  such 
icicles,  nothing  more  terrible  to  life  ;  for,  by  means 
of  their  marvellous  smallness,  they  penetrate  into  the 
interior  of  houses,  pierce  through  the  thickest  fur 
clothing,  enter  the  very  pores  of  the  skin,  and  make 
their  way  even  to  the  lungs  of  man,  causing  fatal 
diseases,  so  that  the  dwellers  in  Arctic  regions  never 
go  out  during  violent  winds. 

If,  on  the  contrary,  these  icicles  fall  in  less  frigid 
zones,  several  unite  and  form  the  well  known  stars 
of  starthng  beauty ;  if  the  air  be  damp,  they  collect 
in  a  large  flake  or  the  poor  little  star  dissolves  in  a 
drop  of  rain,  so  that  frequently  it  rains  in  the  valleys 
while  snow  is  falling  on  the  mountains. 

This  snow,  as  we  have  already  stated,  is  not  a  con- 
fused aggregate  of  solid  particles,  but  is  formed  of  a 
number  of  aqueous  atoms  symmetrically  grouped 
and  possessing  an  infinite  variety  of  forms.  If  it  is 
examined  with  a  magnifying  glass,  a  flake  of  snow 
will    present    the   appearance   of    a  regular    geo- 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  181 

metrical  pattern  symmetrically  arranged  around  a 
centre.  One  will  perhaps  resemble  a  flower  with 
six  petals,  another  a  hexagonal  star  cut  with  the 
most  exquisite  delicacy ;  still  another  flake  will 
present  itself  to  eye  under  the  appearance  of  a 
graceful  arabesque,  and  there  are  snow  stars  of 
every  variety  of  shape. 

Nevertheless  they  are  all  constructed  on  the  same 
model,  fashioned  after  the  same  type.     From  the 


Snow  Crystals. 

central  cone  radiate  six  needles,  at  angles  of  60°. 
From  these  needles  start  out  others  of  smaller 
size,  which  again  send  forth,  to  the  right  and  the 
left,  branches  a  thousand  times  slenderer,  but  still 
faithfully  tracing  their  angle  of  60°. 

All  these  snow  flowers  afi'ect  the  most  marvellous 
forms,  and  present  the  most  varied  aspects  ;  one 
might  mistake  them  for  the  ever  shifting  images  of 
the  kaleidoscope.      They  are  cut  out  of  the  most 


182  WATER. 

delicate  material,  embroidered  on  the  daintiest  mus- 
lin. The  atoms  become  soldered  together ;  they  are 
attracted  mutually  to  one  another,  and  thus  they 
unite  to  form  rosettes,  branches,  stems,  stalks,  co- 
rollas and  geometrical  flowers. 

This  is  what  may  be  seen  in  snowflakes  ;  but  your 
observation  must  be  very  rapid,  for  this  divine  struc 
ture,  these  invisible  monuments  of  which  ever}- 
block  is  an  atom,  have  but  a  short  duration.  A 
single  gleam  of  sunshine  is  sufficient  to  destroy  all 
this  harmony,  and  the  mere  heat  of  your  body  may 
melt  the  fragile  flake.  Instantly  the  atoms  separate 
and  the  stars  disappear ;  a  drop  of  water  takes  the 
place  of  the  fairy  spectacle. 

Ice,  like  snow,  possesses  a  structure  of  admirable 
regularity.  It  consists  of  geometrical  crystals, 
which  can  be  shown  by  the  aid  of  heat. 

Let  us  pass  a  ray  of  electric  light  through  a  piece 
of  ice.  Its  luminous  intensity  is  not  changed  after 
traversing  the  transparent  block,  but  its  calorific  in- 
tensity is  noticeably  diminished,  as  we  can  easily 
ascertain  by  the  aid  of  a  thermometer.  A  certain 
amount  of  heat  has  remained  in  the  ice  and  will 
there  act  the  part  of  a  skillful  anatomist,  dissecting 
in  a  marvellous  manner  the  block  of  solidified 
water. 

If  a  lens  be  placed  before  the  block  of  ice,  in  the 
centre  of  the  ray  of  light,  so  as  to  project  the  image 
of  the  ice  on  a  screen,  we  shall  see  here  also  stars 
with  six  rays,  and  flowers  with  six  petals.  The  lu- 
minous ray  acts  as  the  messenger  who  informs  us 
of  the  work  of  dissection  which  has  been  wrought 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  183 

by  beat  in  the  block  of  ice.  The  heat  melts  the 
water  which  has  become  solidified  on  its  way — it 
destroys  the  structure  of  ice ;  it  carries  away,  one 
by  one,  the  blocks  which  formed  so  admirable  a 
structure ;  and  it  separates  the  molecules  which  the 
atomic  forces  had  heaped  one  upon  another. 

As  in  almost  all  the  manifestations  of  Nature, 
Beauty  and  Power  go  hand  in  hand,  soHd  water 
also  presents  us  both  features  in  striking  contrast. 
Few  things  on  earth  are  more  truly  beautiful  than  a 
fresh-fallen  snow-flake — few  are  more  tenible  than 
a  few  of  these  flakes  frozen  together  in  a  ball.  In 
this  shape  we  call  them  hail,  and  find  them  endowed 
with  a  surprising  power  of  destruction. 


lOE  AND  GLACIERS. 

These  small  crystals  of  ice  form,  in  time,  these 
fields  of  ice  surrounding  the  poles.  They  cover  the 
Alps  with  a  stainless  garment,  and  become  meta- 
morphosed into  water  when  the  rays  of  the  sun 
strike  the  white  and  shining  surface,  in  spring. 
But  this  melting  of  the  snow  is  always  incomplete. 
Beyond  a  certain  limit,  which  is  called  the  "  snow- 
line," begins  the  kingdom  of  everlasting  ice.  Below 
that  line  the  prevailing  heat  causes  the  snow  formed 
by  the  cold  of  winter,  to  melt  completely.  But  if 
above  this  boundary  line  every  winter  were  to  bring 
a  new  accumulation  of  snow,  the  mountains  would, 
in  the  course  of  ages,  be  charged  with  an  enormous 
weight.  If  the  layer  of  snow  merely  increased  at 
the  rate   of  three  feet  a  year,  the  deposit,   which 


184:  WATER. 

would  have  gradually  been  formed  during  the  course 
of  eighteen  centuries,  would  amount  to  nearly  5,000 
feet ;  and  if,  instead  of  limiting  ourselves  to  historic 
ages,  we  went  back  to  geological  periods,  we  should 
have  to  assign  to  the  covering  of  snow  resting  on 
the  shoulders  of  mountalLs,  a  height  absolutely  pro- 
digious. But  no  accumulation  of  this  kind  can  ever 
take  place  ;  and  it  is  out  of  question  that  the  sun 
should  continually  place  on  the  summits  of  the 
mountains  the  water  which  he  is  forever  taking  from 
the  ocean. 

But  by  what  mechanism  are  the  summits  of 
mountains  freed  from  the  excess  of  snow  which 
crushes  them  beneath  its  weight  ?  Immense  masses 
of  snow  and  formidable  glaciers  are  constantly 
detached,  and  form  avalanches  which  are  precipi- 
tated into  the  valleys,  where  they  return  to  the 
liquid  state ;  but  this  rude  and  accidental  motion 
is  not  the  only  one  with  which  glaciers  are  en- 
dowed. They  descend  the  mountain  slopes  slowly 
and  progressively ;  whilst  t)ieir  upper  part  is  situ- 
ated in  the  domain  of  ice,  above  "  the  snow-line," 
their  feet  touch  the  warmer  regions,  where  their 
snow  is  constantly  melted  by  the  action  of  heat. 

We  know  how  easy  it  is  to  agglomerate  snow  by 
pressing  the  flakes  together  in  the  hand,  and  how, 
by  a  powerful  pressure,  they  can  be  made  perfectly 
hard.  A  snow-ball  is  merely  ice  in  process  of  form- 
ation. Ice  itself  is  capable  of  yielding  to  pressure, 
and  if,  consequently,  a  thick  coating  of  snow  is 
spread  over  a  layer  of  ice,  the  latter,  bearing  the 
weight  of  snow,  will  be  pressed  down  and  packed  ; 


PHYSICAL   AKD   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  185 

and  if  it  lies  on  a  slope  it  will  not  long  resist  the 
force  which  propels  it,  but  will  begin  gradually  to 
descend. 

This  movement  is  always  taking  place  on  the  slopes 
,of  mountains  which  are  covered  with  snow  ;  the 
glacier  gradually  slips  down  the  side  of  the  declivity 
on  which  it  came  into  existence,  and  thus  reaches 
warmer  regions,  where  it  is  soon  changed  into  water. 
Between  the  snow  and  the  glacier  is  to  be  found 
what  is  technically  termed  the  neve — this  is  ice  in 
process  of  formation,  agglomerated  snow,  solid  and 
opaque,  such  as  is  to  be  met  with  in  all  high  moun- 
tains. 

Glaciers  are  endowed  with  a  singular  property, 
which  has  often  been  noticed  by  tourists :  that  of 
fitting  themselves  into  the  grooves  in  which  they 
move,  and  penetrating  into  the  irregularities  of 
the  soil.  They  exactly  reproduce  the  form  of  the 
ground  on  which  they  are  placed,  as  if  they  con- 
sisted of  a  viscous  mass  of  molasses  or  soft  wax, 
which,  without  being  absolutely  liquid,  is  soft,  and 
takes  the  exact  shape  of  the  solid  layer  of  earth  or 
of  rock  on  which  it  rests.  The  glacier  becomes  flat- 
tened, spreads  out  or  contracts,  stretches  as  if  made 
of  India  rubber  ;  its  centre  always  advancing  with 
more  rapidity  than  its  melting  sides.  Attempts 
have  been  made  to  explain  this  curious  fact  by 
attributing  a  property  called  "  viscosity,"  to  ice  ;  but 
this  so-called  explanation  cannot  be  admitted  with- 
out actual  proof ;  and  even  if  we  were  perfectly  sure 
of  the  fact  that  solidified  water  yields  to  traction, 
spreading  in  the  same  manner  as  honey  or  tar,  we 


186  WATER. 

would  be  none  the  less  compelled  to  seek  elsewhere 
for  the  cause  of  this  faculty  of  extension  possessed 
by  ice,  since  a  name  is  not  a  theory. 

If  you  take  two  pieces  of  ice,  and  hold  them  for 
a  few  moments  touching  each  other,  their  surfaces 
will  soon  unite,  and  the  result  will  be  a  single  block  of 
ice,  perfectly  homogeneous.  This  experiment  alone 
can  furnish  us  with  an  explanation  of  what  takes 
place  in  nature ;  but  we  will  approach  this  im- 
portant subject  step  by  step,  and  first  inquire  why 
these  two  separate  fragments  became  united. 

In  the  same  manner  as  steam  always  escapes 
from  a  free  liquid  surface,  and  as  the  molecules  of 
the  surface  become  changed  into  gas  sooner  than 
those  of  the  interior  of  the  Hquid  mass,  so,  also,  the 
external  particles  of  a  piece  of  ice  change  into  water, 
and  melt  before  those  of  the  centre.  Two  pieces  of 
ice,  at  32°,  begin  to  enter  into  fusion  on  the  surface; 
if  we  hold  two  of  their  faces  together,  w^e  thus  place 
these  two  surfaces  in  the  centre  of  a  new  block, 
which  we  have  formed  ;  the  fusion  of  these  two  sur- 
faces can  no  longer  go  on,  because  they  touch  one 
another  they  congeal  and  become  glued  to  each 
other. 

We  owe  this  curious  experiment  to  Faraday — ^it 
is  known  under  the  name  of  "  regelation ;"  we  owe 
the  explanation  to  TyndaU,  who  has  verified  the 
fact  by  other  interesting  experiments.  "  During  a 
hot  day  in  summer,"  says  the  English  philosopher, 
"  I  went  into  a  shop  in  the  Strand,  in  the  window 
of  which  some  pieces  of  ice  were  exposed  for  sale, 
in  a  basin.     With  the  permission  of  the  owner  ol 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PKOPEETIES.  187 

the  shop  I  took  them  into  my  hand,  and,  taking  up 
the  topmost  piece,  I  used  it  to  draw  all  the  rest  out 
of  the  dish.  Though  the  thermometer  at  that  mo- 
ment was  at  86°,  the  pieces  of  ice  had  become 
welded  at  their  points  of  junction." 

The  regelation  of  ice  is  effected  even  in  hot  water ; 
two  distinct  fragments,  held  to  each  other  in  a  liquid 
as  hot  as  the  hand  can  bear,  will,  in  a  few  seconds, 
freeze  and  unite  in  spite  of  the  heat.  It  is  by  virtue 
of  this  regelation  that  ice  acts  in  a  manner  similar 
to  a  viscid  body  ;  it  breaks  as  easily  as  a  piece  of 
glass,  but  the  broken  pieces  become  welded  one  to 
another,  and  can  contract  and  expand  under  the  law 
of  gravity,  or  under  the  weight  of  snow  which  they 
support. 

A  bar  of  ice,  compressed  successively  in  a  series 
of  moulds,  each  more  bent  than  the  last,  can  be 
transformed  into  a  circular  ring.  The  bar  breaks  in 
the  mould,  but  has  scarcely  broken  before  it  freezes 
again,  and  forms  a  single  mass,  homogeneous  and 
unchanged.  It  is  the  same  principle  which  pre- 
sides over  the  formation  of  snowballs,  squeezed  be- 
tween the  hands.  If  we  forcibly  compress  a  large 
snowball  in  a  mould  we  can  obtain  a  cup  of  ice, 
perfectly  transparent,  and  resulting  from  regelation. 
If  a  spherical  mould  be  filled  with  snow  and  then 
compressed  by  a  hydraulic  press,  we  obtain  a  ball 
of  ice,  solid  and  transparent, — a  snowball  somewhat 
different  from  those  that  schoolboys  are  in  the 
habit  of  making. 

Mountaineers,  though  uninitiated  into  the  theories 
of  physical  science,  frequently  avail  themselves  oi 


188  WATER. 

this  property  of  regelation,  possessed  by  solidified 
water,  in  order  to  cross  deep  crevasses,  by  means  of 
snow-bridges.  By  walking  cautiously  on  a  bridge, 
formed  of  agglomerated  snow-flakes,  they  force  them 
to  harden,  and  the  compressed  snow  assumes,  under 
the  influence  of  regelation,  a  hardness  and  rigidity 
which  renders  it  capable  of  supporting  a  heavy 
weight.  Some  of  the  guides,  in  Switzerland,  are  in 
the  habit  of  crossing,  fearlessly,  in  this  manner,  on 
snow  bridges,  very  deep  gulfs ;  and  if  ever  you  see 
them  making  these  dangerous-looking  transits,  in- 
stead of  trembling  with  apprehension  of  what  their 
fate  may  prove,  make  yourself  perfectly  easy  about 
them,  think  of  the  regelation  of  ice,  and  follow  their 
example  by  trying  the  experiment  yourself. 

You  understand  by  this  time,  dear  reader,  how  a 
glacier  makes  its  way  through  the  defiles  of  the 
Alps,  insinuates  itself  into  the  inequalities  of  the 
soil,  penetrates  into  narrow  gorges,  bends  and  winds 
backwards  and  forwards  over  the  shoulders  of 
mountains,  takes  the  impress  of  the  furrows  which 
it  meets  with,  adapts  itself  to  the  movement  into 
which  all  these  objects  urge  it,"  and  even  sinks  into 
the  crevices  of  rocks,  without  necessarily  possessing 
that  property  gf  viscosity ,  for  which  M.  Jorbes  and 
Bishop  Bendu  have  given^credit. 

The  ice,  in  its  course,  wears  away  and  polishes 
the  surfaces  over  which  it  glides,  for  its  lower 
part  is  filled  with  pebbles,  which  act  the  part 
of  the  hard  fragments  adhering  to  sand-paper. 
The  ground  becomes  lightly  fissured  by  these 
small  stones,  which  progress  slowly  with  the  glacier. 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  189 

When  the  glacier  has  ceased  to  exist — when  it  is 
converted  into  water,  by  the  action  of  solar  heat 
— it  leaves  on  the  place  of  its  existence  incontestable 
traces  of  its  former  presence,  and  its  native  soil  is 
covered  with  the  marks  which  it  has  traced. 

In  all  mountain  chains,  in  every  country,  we  see 
in  a  number  of  different  places,  deep  Hutings  fur- 
rowing the  soil,  and  smoothly  rounded  off  surfaces, 
which  tell  the  eye  of  the  observer,  in  clear  language, 
that  a  glacier  must  have  formerly  existed  in  the 
place  where  he  is  now  standing.  The  valley  of  the 
Grimsel,  in  the  Bernese  Oberland,  presents  an 
aspect  highly  characteristic  of  the  passage  of  gla- 
ciers ;  the  rocks  are  rounded  off  and  polished,  and 
everywhere  traces  are  found  of  the  furrows  formed 
by  the  pebbles  which  adhere  to  the  ice.  The  same 
characteristics  are  to  be  found  in  the  valley  of  the 
Ehone ;  on  the  slopes  of  the  Jura ;  everything  in 
these  regions  proclaims  the  existence  of  former  gla- 
ciers— formidable  and  powerful — veritable  giants, 
when  compared  with  our  modern  glaciers. 

North  America  and  certain  parts  of  Asia  were 
once  upon  a  time  covered  with  ice,  and  the  cedars 
of  Lebanon  now  flourish  over  the  morains  of  pre- 
historic times. 

The  whole  of  our  continent,  between  Newfound- 
land and  the  Upper  Mississippi,  is  thickly  strewn  with 
innumerable  blocks  torn  from  regions  near  the  pole 
and  transported  southward,  not  only  on  the  plains, 
but  often  raised  to  an  altitude  of  500  feet.  All  these 
erratic  boulders,  as  they  are  commonly  called,  lie  on 
the  southeast   side   of   the   mountains   from  which 


190  WATER. 

they  come  ;  some,  torn  from  Canada,  have  been  car- 
ried as  far  as  Ohio ;  others,  from  Labrador,  have 
been  cast  on  the  southern  coast  of  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence  ;  and  red  sandstone,  plucked  from  Prince 
Edward's  Island,  now  lies  in  Nova  Scotia.  New 
England  can  show  blocks  of  huge  size  lying  four 
hundred  feet  higher  than  the  rocks  from  which  they 
come.  In  Europe  enormous  masses,  detached  from 
the  mountains  of  Sweden  and  Finland,  are  dis- 
persed in  prodigious  numbers  over  Germany,  Poland 
and  Bussia.  Nor  is  this  all.  Immense  tracts  oi 
transported  materials,  consisting  of  sand,  gravel, 
clay,  mud,  and  all  sorts  of  sweepings  of  the  face  of 
the  earth,  and  incrusted  with  erratic  boulders,  cover 
vast  regions  to  a  depth  which  attains  as  much  as 
three  hundred  feet,  forming  sometimes  grand  hori- 
zontal plains,  sometimes  tiers  of  hills,  stretching 
along  from  north  to  south.  Mysterious  marks, 
stripes,  furrows  and  flutings,  often  two  feet  deep, 
have  been  scooped  out  by  an  irresistible  chisel  in 
the  granite  flanks  of  mountains,  that  have  been 
ground  down,  smoothed  and  polished,  by  the  agency 
of  an  anonymous  workman. 

All  these  erratic  blocks,  vast  deposits  and  inex- 
plicable marks,  are,  according  to  Agassiz's  theory, 
the  result  of  the  action  of  grand  polar  glaciers. 

The  ice  of  glaciers,  snow  and  the  neve^  are  not  the 
only  forms  of  solidified  water  which  nature  presents 
to  our  view.  Glaciers  frequently  contain  cavities 
full  of  ,water,  on  the  surface  of  which  layers  of  ice 
form  themselves  of  quite  a  different  character  to  the 
glacier-ice  ;  this  water-ice  is  more  compact  than  the 


THYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PEOPERTIES.  191 

latter,  and  does  not  contain  any  of  the  capillary 
tubes  which  give  to  ice  the  beautiful  blue  tint  so 
much  admired  by  tourists. 

At  the  bottom  of  rapid  rivers,  such  as  the  Rhine, 
are  sometimes  found  collected  together  fragments 
of  a  kind  of  spongy  solidified  ice,  known  to  the 
dwellers  on  the  banks  of  these  rivers  as  "  bottom-ice'' 

The  ice  which  is  formed  on  ponds  and  rivers  is 
naturally  that  variety  which  has  been  most  carefully 
studied.  We  have  shown  that  this  ice  has  a  crys- 
talline structure — a  fact  which  can  be  easily  ascer- 
tained by  examining  the  motley  designs  which  are  to 
be  seen  on  our  window  panes  during  severe  frost.* 

Ice  has,  finally,  often  been  met  with  in  real  crys- 
tals, formed  by  hexagonal  or  triangular  prisms.  Dr. 
Clarke  took  from  under  the  bridge  at  Cambridge 
several  large  rhomboidic  crystals  of  ice.  These 
cases,  however,  are  exceptional,  ice  seldom  present- 
ing a  more  crystalline  structure  than  glass. 

*  Mr.  Haas  has  discovered  a  process  by  which  the  frost  designs 
may  be  retained  upon  a  window.  He  exposes  to  the  cold  a  hori- 
zontal glass  plate  covered  with  a  thin  sheet  of  water,  holding 
enamel  powder  in  suspension.  The  hoar  frost,  keeping  the  powder 
of  enamel  imprisoned,  forms  and  traces  out  numerous  ramified 
arabesques.  When  the  water  is  evaporated  by  carrying  the  glass 
plate  to  the  stove,  beautiful  aborescent  designs  of  enamel  I'emain, 
and  the  crystallizations  formed  by  the  hoar  frost  are  fixed  forever 
by  the  enamel  melted  in  the  stove  heat. 


CHAPTER  V. 

THE   PART  WHICH   WATER  PLAYS   IN   CHEMISTRY. 

"  Water  is  the  principle  of  all  things,— plants  and  animals  are  only  watei 
condensed,  and  it  is  into  water  that  they  are  resolved  after  death." — Thales. 

1.  Dissolution. — This  phenomenon,  common  and 
well-known  as  it  is,  is  nevertheless  of  great  interest. 

We  throw  a  handful  of  saltpetre  (nitrate  of  po- 
tash) into  a  vessel  filled  with  water ;  this  salt  dis- 
solves like  sugar.  We  then  throw  into  the  vessel  a 
second  handful  of  the  same  salt,  then  a  third,  then 
a  fourth,  and  they  will  all  melt  and  disappear,  little 
by  little,  like  the  preceding.  But  at  last  a  moment 
is  sure  to  arrive,  when  the  liquid  will  refuse  to  dis- 
solve the  fresh  salt  which  will  be  thrown  into  it,  and 
leave  it  unchanged  and  solid,  at  the  bottom  of  the 
vessel. 

The  water  is  now  said  to  be  saturated.  If  we 
heat  this  water,  the  salt,  which  is  in  excess,  and 
lying  on  the  bottom,  dissolves  under  the  influence  of 
heat ;  and  when  the  liquid  is  in  a  boiling  condition 
we  can  cause  it  to  absorb  a  much  larger  quantity  of 
the  salt  than  it  did  at  a  lower  temperature. 

Water,  when  hot,  usually  possesses  a  greater 
solvent  power  than  when  it  is  cold ;  notwithstand- 


PHYSICAL   AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  1^6 

ing  which,  certain  products — such  as  common  kit- 
chen salt — dissolve  as  well  in  cold  as  in  boiling 
water.  If  we  allow  a  basinful  of  water,  which  had 
been  saturated  when  warm,  to  cool  off  and  to  rest 
a  few  hours,  it  will  relinquish  the  excess  of  salt,  and 
deposit  it  in  the  shape  of  geometrical  crystals  of 
various  sizes.  Carbonate  of  soda,  sulphate  of  cop- 
per, and  alum,  crystallize  with  great  facility  in  water, 
and  carpet  the  bottom  of  the  vessel  in  which  they 
are  placed  with  needles  and  prisms  of  the  most  re- 
markable appearance.     Water  does  not  dissolve  all 


Crystals  of  Saltpetre. 

salts  in  like  proportion ;  a  pint  will  take  up  more 
than  two  pounds  of  sulphate  of  soda,  but  cannot 
dissolve  more  than  two  grains  of  sulphate  of  lime. 
Water  charged  with  carbonic  acid  acts  upon  a 
great  number  of  stones ;  it  dissolves  with  ease,  as 
we  have  seen,  carbonate  of  lime,  (chalk,  and  common 
building-stone,)  and  can  even  decompose  granite 
rocks  ;  and  the  carbonic  acid,  which  it  holds  in 
solution,  is  thus  found  fixed  in  the  solid  state. 

Dissolution  is  frequently  accompanied  by  a  che- 
.mical  phenomenon, — a  more  or  less  considerable 
escape  of  heat, — and  it  is  thus  that  water,  which 


194 


WATER. 


has  no  effect  ou  some  substances,  such  as  gold, 
silver,  quartz,  carbon,  sulphur,  etc.,  is  decomposed 
by  potassium  and  sodium  ;  it  is  thus  that  it  unites 
with  lime  and  anhydro-sulphuric  acid,  and  that,  in 
the  act  of  uniting  with  lime,  it  raises  the  temper- 
ature more  or  less,  while  giving  birth  to  a  new  com- 
position— a  true  chemical  combination. 


Action  of  Water  on  Lime. 

Nor  is  the  solvent  power  of  water  less  wonderful 
when  applied  to  other  substances.  Few  of  us,  surel3% 
imagine  that  the  glass  which  contains  the  water  we 
drink  is  soluble  bj  the  latter .;  and  yet  it  is  well 
known  that  the  stained-glass  windows  of  Westmin- 
ster Abbey  have  all  been  honey-combed,  and  in 
many  places  nearly  eaten  through  by  the  rain !  The 
great  chemist,  Lavoisier,  moreover,  found  that  the 


PHYSICAL  AND  CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.     195 

glass  retorts,  which  he  used  in  distilling  water  from 
its  constituent  gases,  lost  much  of  their  weight, 
while  that  of  water  was  correspondingly  increased 
by  an  impregnation  of  the  elementary  flint  and 
alkali  of  the  glass.  Nor  is  granite  itself  exempt 
from  the  mastery  of  this  marvellous  solvent.  An 
object  dipped  in  the  sihcious  waters  thrown  up  by 
the  hot  springs  of  Iceland,  from  the  depth  of  the 
Plutonic  strata,  becomes  coated  with  a  flinty  deposit 
identical  with  the  silicate  of  glass. 

In  like  manner,  water  is  capable  of  absorbing 
astonishing  quantities  of  various  gases ;  of  ammonia, 
the  gas  exhaled  by  spirits  of  hartshorn,  not  less 
than  seventy-six  times  its  own  measure.  To  this 
absorbent  power  of  water  is  owing  the  frequent 
contamination  of  London  water  by  the  coal-gas, 
which,  leaking  from  the  gas-pipes  into  the  soil,  is 
drawn  into  the  water-pipes,  sometimes  to  such  an 
extent  as  actually  to  ignite  at  the  hydrants!  In 
other  cases,  water  has  absorbed  large  quantities  of 
the  foul  gases  exhaled  by  sinks  and  cesspools,  and 
led  to  fearful  diseases  and  grievous  loss  of  life 
among  those  who  drank  it,  unconscious  of  its  con- 
tamination. 

2.  The  Color  and  Transparency  of  Water. — 
Who  would  believe  that  colorless  water  could  tinge, 
or  render  transparent,  the  salts  which  crystallize  in 
its  bosom?  Nothing,  however,  is  truer,  as  very 
simple  experiments  prove. 

We  take  some  crystals  of  ^sulphate  of  copper, 
which  present  an  admirable  shade  of  dark  blue; 


196 


WATER. 


their  brightness  and  their  transparency  are  remark- 
able, and  they  reflect  the  light  which  falls  upon  their 
regular  faces.  If  we  confine  them  in  a  stove,  heated 
to  a  temperature  of  248° — a  degree  at  which  water 
evaporates  and  abandons  the  sulphate  of  copper — 
we  shall  find  that,  at  the  end  of  a  few  hours,  the 
salt  will  be  thoroughly  dry ;  but  the  crystals  also 
are  destroyed,  the  structure  broken  up  owing  to 
tlie  departure  of    the   water ;    color   and   transpa- 


Oven  for  drying  Salts. 

rency  alike  have  fled  with  the  liquid  element.  These 
crystals,  blue  and  regular  when  they  contained 
water,  are,  now  that  they  have  become  dry,  changed 
into  a  white,  opaque  powder. 

We  next  take  transparent  crystals  of  carbonate  of 
soda.  If  we  dry  them  they  will,  in  like  manner, 
assume  the  appearance  of  a  white  and  shapeless 
dust,  as  soon  as  they  lose  their  water. 


PHYSICAL   AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  197 

The  water  thus  imprisoned  in  the  mass  of  various 
crystallized  bodies  is  not  mixed ;  it  is  combined — 
united — according  to  positive  laws,  with  the  mole- 
cules of  salt,  which  it  colors  and  renders  transpa- 
rent ;  for  instance :  seven  molecules  of  water  unite 
with  one  molecule  of  sulphate  of  copper  to  form  the 
beautiful  blue  crystals,  which  make  so  striking  an 
ornament  in  some  chemists'  shops. 

A  large  number  of  stones  also  contain  this  loater 
of  crystallization,  which  gives  them  their  beautiful 
transparency.  The  translucent  gypsum,  which  is 
so  frequently  met  with  in  the  quarries  near  Paris, 
is  a  hydrated  sulphate  of  lime,  having  a  singular 
crystalline  form,  and  presenting  the  appearance  of 
the  head  of  a  lance.  This  gypsum,  when  calcined, 
gives  out  the  water  which  it  contains,  and  changes 
into  a  white  dust — called  plaster  of  paris.  Azurite 
(or  lazulite),  one  of  the  most  beautiful  stones  of 
which  the  mineral  world  boasts,  and  which  has  a  reg- 
ular crystalline  form,  of  beautiful  dark  blue  color, 
contains,  also,  waters  of  crystallization,  and  is  des- 
troyed as  soon  as  it  is  dried,  losing,  as  it  does,  tho 
tint  of  azure,  which    gives  it  its  name. 

3.  Plants  and  Animals. — Much  more  important 
is  the  chemical  part  played  by  water  in  the  animal 
and  vegetable  kingdoms.  We  all  know  that  the 
Hquid  element  nourishes  plants,  and  we  shall  now 
find  that  it  almost  entirely  constitutes  the  trees  of 
our  forests,  the  fruit  and  seeds  of  those  trees,  and 
the  bodies  of  every  living  thing.  The  philosopher 
Thales,  the   celebrated  head  of  the  Ionian  school, 


198  WATER. 

said,  two  thousand  years  ago  :  "  Water  is  the  prin- 
ciple of  everything ;  plants  and  animals  are  merely 
condensed  water,  and  it  is  into  water  that  they  will 
be  resolved  after  death."  This  statement  is  not  so 
exaggerated  as  might  appear  at  first  sight. 

If  we  heat  in  a  stove  a  handful  of  green  herbs 
which  have  been  carefully  weighed,  and  after  the 
water  has  had  time  to  evaporate,  cast  our  eyes  upon 
the  remains  of  the  dried  plants,  we  shall  find  that 
these  herbs,  so  recently  green  and  brilliant,  fresh  and 
living,  are  now  dead  and  calcined.  Their  weight  is 
diminished  by  four  fifths ;  and  in  depriving  their 
substance  of  the  water  it  contained,  we  have  taken 
out  of  them  all  that  contributed  to  their  Hfe  ;  we 
have  destroyed  the  sap,  the  coloring  matter,  in  fact, 
the  whole  organism. 

All  animals,  including  man,  consist  in  like  manner 
almost  entirely  of  the  elements  of  water.  A  few 
globules  are  all  that  is  needed  to  change  water  into 
blood,  and  a  few  mineral  and  organic  substances 
transform  water  into  sap  or  into  milk.  Natural 
milk  contains  85  per  cent,  of  water,  and  the  blood 
of  animals  97  per  cent.  I 

If  a  beefsteak  be  strongly  pressed  between  two 
sheets  of  blotting-paper,  it  will  yield  nearly  four 
fifths  of  its  own  weight  of  water,  while  the  experi- 
ments of  Berzelius  and  Dalton  prove  that  of  the 
human  frame,  including  the  bones,  one  fourth  is 
solid  matter,  the  rest  being  water.  "  If  a  man, 
therefore,"  says  the  Swedish  savant,  "  whose  weight 
is  140  pounds,  were  squeezed  flat  under  a  hy- 
draulic press,  105  pounds  of  water  would  be  ex- 


PHYSICAL  AND   CHEMICAL  PROPERTIES.  199 

pressed  and  only  thirty-five  pounds  of  dry  residue, 
composed  chiefly  of  carbon  and  nitrogen,  would  re- 
main. The  living  organism  is  thus  to  be  regarded  as 
a  solid  mass  dissolved  in  water."  AndDalton  found 
by  experiments  made  on  his  own  person,  that  five 
sixths  of  the  food  taken  day  by  day  to  repair  the 
human  fabric  is  also  water ;  of  potatoes,  again,  no 
less  than  seventy-five  per  cent,  is  water,  and  of  tur- 
nips, at  least  ninety. 

If,  as  some  say,  iron  is  the  bone  of  the  earth, 
then  water  is  the  blood — the  ceaseless  ebb  and  flow, 
the  endless  evaporation  and  return,  corresponding 
to  the  throb  and  pulse  of  the  human  heart  and  its 
life  blood.  The  very  air,  even  when  crisp  and  dry, 
has  one  fifth  per  cent,  of  moisture  in  it,  and  without 
water  the  whole  earth,  Himalayas  and  Andes  in- 
cluded, would  be  but  a  handful  of  dust,  a  gigantic 
heap  of  dry  powder,  on  which  not  even  the  most 
rudimentary  lichen  would  exist.  The  ancients  built 
altars  to  Diana  and  worshipped  the  mother  Moon. 
For  Diana  and  the  Moon  emblemized  the  water 
principle,  without  which  Nature  would  have  no 
plastic  force,  and  the  fair  earth  no  form,  no  life,  no 
lovehness. 

Without  water  not  only  the  oceans  would  dry  up, 
but  the  rivers,  streams  and  brooks  which  course 
through  all  the  lands,  would  present  the  appearance 
of  dried-up  furrows ;  the  little  brooks  would  cease 
to  purl  and  murmur.  Trees,  plants,  vegetables  of 
every  kind  would  be  utterly  destroyed ;  losing  the 
water  which  they  contain,  they  would  lose  both 
their  sap  and  their  life — the  noblest  trees  of  our 


200  WATEll. 

forest  would  be  transformed  into  a  confused  heap  of 
shapeless  dust. 

Even  the  majority  of  stones  would  change  their 
appearance — transparent  gypsum  would  become 
white  powder,  blue  carbonate  of  copper  and  the 
green  stalactites  of  malachite  would  be  changed  in- 
to colorless  ashes ;  building-stone,  slate,  the  strata 
of  coal,  all  would  wear  an  appearance  totally  differ- 
ent from  that  which  they  now  present. 

The  air,  deprived  of  vapor  and  of  the  clouds 
which  float  in  it,  would  no  longer  present  the  mag- 
nificent spectacles  which  result  from  the  play  of 
light ;  the  sun  would  no  longer,  as  he  sets,  tinge 
the  massive  banks  of  clouds  with  crimson  and  gold  ; 
the  entire  surface  of  the  globe  would  present  a  ter- 
rible picture  of  desolation,  and  with  the  disappear- 
ance of  water  all  organic  life  would  perish. 


V. 


THE  USES  OF  WATER. 


"  There  are  few  substances  of  which  so  raauy  uses  have  been  made  as 
water. ' ' — Thenard. 

"  The  uses  of  water  are  innumerable,  and  they  increase  in  number  in  pro- 
portion as  the  hx;man  intellect  develops  itself,  and  discovers  new  servicei 
which  this  agent  can  render." — Jean  Reynabd. 


CHAPTER  1. 

WATER  AND  AGRICULTURE. 

<<  To  ameliorate  the  water-system  of  the  world  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
cause  it  to  subserve  public  utility  to  the  highest  degree  possible,  to  extend 
the  numerous  agricultural  expedients  for  turning  running  water  to  account, 
18  to  open  up  sources  of  prosperity  so  numerous  and  so  great,  that  the  science 
of  the  engineer  could  not  be  dii-ected  towards  an  object  more  entirely  in  con- 
formity with  the  general  interest.  '— Nadault  de  Buffon. 

"  The  liquid  element  is  to  the  dry  a  constant  remedy,  protecting  it  against 
aridity.  "—MiCHELET. 

When  the  summer  sun  has  for  a  long  time  been 
burning  the  parched  earth  with  its  pitiless  beams, 
\yhen  the  sky  has  refused  to  bestow  the  blessings 
of  rain  upon  the  earth,  trees,  flowers,  and  all  vegeta- 
tion appear  to  mourn  and  languish  ;  the  leaves  wilt, 
the  branches  droop,  the  meadows  lose  their  briUiant 
verdure,  and  grain  stalks  bend  under  the  weight  of 
their  ears,  while  at  the  same  time  all  noxious  plants 
increase  with  startling  rapidity  in  the  fields  which 
they  invade.  If  the  sky  becomes  dark,  if  thick 
clouds  begin  to  burst,  pouring  upon  the  parched 
ground  a  profusion  of  rain,  then  vegetation  rapidly 
revives  and  drinks  in  joyously  the  precious  blessing. 
Everything  seems  as  though  newly  awakening  to 
life.     But  the  sky  does  not  always  grant  so  freely 


204  WATER. 

its  treasures,  aod  the  husbandman  cannot  always 
afford  to  wait  till  the  clouds  bring  him  that  water 
which  is  the  very  life  of  his  fields ;  he  must  learn 
how  to  prepare  for  the  inclemency  of  the  season, 
and  to  provide  against  drought.  Has  not  Virgil 
already  said :  "  Next  to  the  gods  there  is  nothing  so 
all-powerful  as  agriculture  ?  " 

Plants,  like  animals,  are  born,  grow,  reproduce 
themselves  and  die  ;  like  animals  they  breathe  ;  like 
animals  they  requre  food.  Their  leaves  are  their  or- 
gans of  breathing ;  they  absorb  the  carbonic  acid  of 
the  air,  and  under  the  influence  of  the  solar  rays,  they 
exhale  oxygen  and  assimilate  the  carbon  which  they 
require  for  their  development.  Their  roots  are  the 
organs  of  nutrition  ;  they  search  in  the  soil  for  such 
elements  as  are  necessary  to  feed  the  plant,  and  it 
is  water  which  brings  these  to  them  in  a  state  of  so- 
lution. The  food  of  plants  consists  of  hydrogen, 
obtained  through  the  decomposition  of  water  ;  nitro- 
gen proceeding  from  the  ammonia  contained  in  every 
kind  of  water,  even  in  rain-water  and  certain  mine- 
ral substances,  such  as  soda,  potash,  lime,  silica, 
magnesia,  etc.  It  is  hence  not  every  kind  of  water 
that  can  fertilize  the  soil  and  aid  vegetation  ;  there 
are  some  even  which  being  injurious  to  the  develop- 
ment of  plants  render  the  earth  barren.  The  stag- 
nant waters  of  marshes  and  peat  bogs  put  an  end  to 
organic  life  ;  for  being  charged  with  astringent  mat- 
ter they  wither  the  foliage  and  paralyze  vegetation. 
Water  which  has  been  flowing  through  a  very  shady 
country,  or  even  under  large  trees,  is  cold,  and  re- 
tards rather  than  advances  the  growth  of  plants  ;  it 


THE   USES   OP  WATER.  205 

carries  into  the  fields  the  seeds  of  weeds  and  noxious 
herbs,  which  soon  spring  up  and  thrive  to  the  great 
detriment  of  the  cultivated  plants.  If  water  should 
have  imbibed  any  of  the  acid  which  is  to  be  found 
in  soils  formed  by  the  debris  of  organic  matter,  it 
may  be  highly  deleterious. 

Water  from  badly  aerated  springs  also,  like  that 
which  is  formed  from  the  melting  of  snow-water,  is 
injurious  both  to  plants  and  animals,  and  can  be 
used  for  irrigation  only  after  it  has  been  exposed  to 
the  air  for  a  considerable  time.  Plaster  is  beneficial 
to  a  larger  number  of  plants,  and  water  charged 
with  plaster,  is  therefore  good  for  watering.  Not  so 
that  which  holds  any  calcareous  matter  in  solution. 
According  to  Sinclair,  water  impregnated  with  iron 
has  the  same  effect  upon  plants  as  upon  animals,  and 
serves  to  imbue  grass  and  herbs  with  tonic  qualities. 
Water  which  contains  an  appreciable  quantity  of 
sulphate  of  iron  is  injurious,  and  carbonate  of 
iron  is  still  more  so  ;  it  covers  the  tissues  of  plants 
with  a  crust,  closes  their  pores,  obstructs  their  cells, 
and  gradually  kills  them.  Brackish  water  and  even 
sea  water  produce  good  results  if  applied  cautiously 
and  in  due  proportion  to  the  dryness  of  the  climate. 
Every  one  knows  what  beneficial  effects  salt  mea- 
dows have  upon  cattle,  and  the  improvement  they 
cause  in  the  quality  of  the  meat.  River  water  and 
that  of  well  aerated  springs  are  alike  beneficial  and 
enrich  the  soil.  From  these  the  husbandman  draws 
his  wealth : 

' '  When  'ueath  the  burning  sun  the  scorched  herbs  die, 
I  see  swift  rushing  down  a  soft  descent 


206  WATER. 

A  limpid  brook,  which  on  a  rocky  bed 
Falls,  foams,  and  flowing  with  a  gentle  murmur 
To  each  parched  mead,  brings  back  the  vanished  green." 

Virgil. 

It  is  curious  that  the  importance  of  water  in  con- 
nection with  agriculture  has  been  nowhere  more 
fully  aj)preciated  than  by  the  French,  and  is  no- 
where more  grievously  neglected  than  in  our  own 
country.  The  unfortunate  French,  the  race  of  con- 
trasts by  eminence,  combining  rare  talents  with 
sad  defects  and  fatal  passions,  have  studied  the  sub- 
ject of  irrigation  thoroughly,  and  possess  the  best 
code  of  laws  controlling  the  use  of  water  known  to 
our  day.  The  famous  works  by  which  the  muddy, 
fertilizing  water  of  the  river  Durance,  near  Marseilles, 
is  distributed  by  a  vast  net  of  canals  over  an  enor- 
mous district,  dates  back  to  the  twelfth  century. 
At  that  time  their  neighbors,  the  Moors  in  Spain, 
taught  them  the  great  art  of  irrigation  ;  their  works 
being  of  such  surpassing  merit,  that  quite  recently 
Prussian  engineers  were  sent  to  Southern  Spain, 
there  to  study  the  scanty  ruins  which  still  speak 
eloquently  of  the  marvellous  skill  of  the  Arabs.  Even 
now  large  portions  of  the  kingdom  are  cultivated  by 
the  aid  of  constructions  belonging  to  those  days. 
The  traveller  who  reaches  Granada  and  visits  the 
Alhambra,  hears  of  an  evening,  as  the  sun  sinks  in 
a  flood  of  gold  beneath  the  horizon,  a  large  bell 
striking  three,  four,  five  times,  and  then  deep  silence 
falls  upon  the  city.  After  some  minutes  a  few  more 
strokes,  but  in  a  different  rhythm.  That  is  the  Bell 
of  the  Moorish  Kings,  which   now,  after  so   many 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  207 

centuries,  tells  the  peasant  far  out  on  the  vast  Vega, 
that  he  can  open  the  sluices  of  his  canal,  and  then 
bids  him  close  them  again.  Every  five  minutes  the 
signal  is  repeated,  from  sunset  till  sunrise ;  its 
solemn  sounds  are  heard  far  away  in  the  hot  sum- 
mer night,  and  all  over  the  plain  it  sets  the  blessed 
waters  running  and  purling  merrily,  bringing  new 
life  to  the  thirsting  fields. 

Nor  is  Italy  behindhand  in  this  branch  of  art,  for 
here  above  all,  hydraulics  have  been  proved  to  be  an 
art  Hke  all  others,  since  some  of  the  greatest  paint- 
ers, a  Leonardo  da  Vinci  and  a  Guido  Romano,  a 
Raphael  even,  and  a  Bramante,  have  lent  their 
genius  to  the  construction  of  great  works  of  irriga- 
tion. Northern  Italy,  especially,  is  covered  with  a 
multitude  of  canals,  watering  a  plain  of  two  million 
acres,  the  grandest  of  which  bears  the  name  of  her 
illustrious  statesman,  Cavour,  and  has  cost  more 
than  fourteen  milhon  dollars  ! 

It  is  certainly  not  peculiarly  creditable  to  our 
nation,  that  the  advantages  of  irrigation  are  as  yet 
so  imperfectly  appreciated  in  this  country,  although 
the  natural  fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  facility  of 
obtaining  virgin  land  for  cultivation  explain  this 
neglect  in  part.  The  Mormons  seem  to  have  been 
"  wise  in  their  generation  "  in  this  respect.  It  is 
one  of  the  beauties  of  their  great  city  that  the  clear, 
fresh  water  is  running  through  aU  the  streets,  and 
from  the  main  channels  conducted  into  every  garden 
and  field — the  supply  being  strictly  regulated  by 
law  and  carefully  watched  over  by  "  water-masters." 


'a08  water. 


lERIGATION  AND  DRAINAGE. 

Have  you  never  found  pleasure,  dear  reader,  in 
cultivating  a  plant  in  a  flower-pot,  on  jour  window- 
sill?  Did  you  lavish  your  care  on  the  little  shrub 
while  anxiously  watching  its  progress?  You  noticed 
the  birth  of  the  first  little  bud,  you  saw  it  change 
into  a  beautiful  flower  with  fresh  and  vivid  colors, 
and  again  and  again  you  admired  its  graceful  petals 
at  the  moment  when  they  opened  under  the  caresses 
of  the  sun.  What  made  that  plant  thus  grow  be- 
neath your  eyes  ?  You  ought  to  know  better  than 
any  one,  for  you  it  was  who  every  morning  supphed 
the  food  it  needed  in  the  form  of  water.  In  the  eve- 
ning the  leaves  and  flowers,  exhausted  by  the  heat 
of  the  day,  had  lost  their  smiling  beauty  and  seemed 
to  droop  ;  but  a  little  water  speedily  revived  them. 

Did  you  never  remark  that  the  earthen  pot  which 
contained  your  plant,  was  pierced  at  the  bottom 
with  a  small  hole?  Did  you  not  observe  that  the 
saucer,  which  held  the  flower-pot,  often  filled  with 
water  while  you  were  watering  your  plant?  The 
water  which  had  been  poured  into  the  pot  had 
passed  through  the  small  supply  of  earth  in  which 
the  roots  were  spread  out ;  it  had  been  thus  filtered, 
and  the  surplus  of  liquid  which  was  not  absorbed 
by  the  roots,  settled  in  the  saucer  by  means  of  the 
hole  at  the  bottom.  Without  this  outlet  the  water 
would  have  remained  in  the  midst  of  the  roots,  which 
would  have  quickly  rotted,  thus  causing  the  death 
of  your  plant.  Well,  your  agriculture  prospered 
because  it  was  in  conformity  with  the  rules  of  irriga- 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  209 

tion  and  drainage  ;  and  the  husbandman  should  ar- 
range the  fields  he  cultivates  on  the  same  principle 
as  the  flower-pot.  It  is  by  an  artificial  watering, 
by  irrigation,  that  he  must  improve  his  soil,  but  the 
water  has  to  be  distributed  with  prudence,  or  else 
the  remedy  may  prove  a  poison ;  it  can  kill  as  well 
as  cure.  After  having  watered  the  soil,  after  the 
ground  has  absorbed  the  water  which  has  been  so 
abundantly  poured  upon  it,  it  becomes  necessary  to 
relieve  it  of  the  excess  of  liquid.  Irrigation  must 
be  succeeded  by  drainage. 

Irrigation  is  useful  to  all  soils,  but  especially  to 
sandy  soils,  and  if  the  water  used  for  the  purpose 
contain  some  earthy  elements,  it  not  only  enriches 
the  land  by  the  manure  it  brings,  but  it  also  lessens 
its  too  porous  character  by  means  of  the  sediment 
which  it  deposits.  It  is  very  important  to  under- 
stand thoroughly  what  amount  of  water  is  requisite 
for  the  purpose  of  irrigation  ;  the  volume  of  water 
supplied,  the  rapidity  of  its  flow,  the  absorbent  ca- 
pacity of  the  soil,  and  the  climate  of  the  locality, 
all  should  be  the  subject  of  the  farmer's  most  atten- 
tive study.  In  warmer  climates  the  amount  of  water 
usually  employed  is  equal  to  the  extent  of  land 
which  is  to  be  irrigated,  but  the  quantity  differs 
naturally  very  much  in  various  parts  of  the  world. 
Northern  France,  for  instance,  requires  nine  to  ten 
times  as  much  water  for  the  acre  as  southern  France, 
while  on  the  other  hand  the  quality,^  that  is,  the  fer- 
tilizing power  of  some  rivers  differs  so  much  from 
others,  that  frequently  one  kind  of  water  is  worth  ten^ 
times  as  much  as  another. 


210 


WATER. 


The  water  being  conveyed  to  the  head  of  a  piece 
of  land,  the  question  next  arises,  "  How  it  is  to  be 
used  so  as  to  spread  uniformly  over  the  whole  sur- 
face, and  thus  to  benefit  all  the  plants?"  We  shall 
not  attempt  to  describe  the  various  methods  of  irri- 
gation that  have  been  tried,  but  shall  content  our- 
selves with  briefly  pointing  out  those  that  have  been 
found  most  successful.  The  figure  below  rep- 
resents irrigation  by  infiltration  ;  the  water  arrives 
by  a  feeding-trench  A,  and  is  distributed  into  other 


Irrigation  by  Infiltration. 

secondary  trenches  B  B ;  the  latter  are  siniply 
deep  open  furrows  between  those  formed  by  the 
ploughshare  or  the  drill  for  cultivation.  Water  is 
successively  let  into  all  the  secondary  trenches ;  for 
instance,  a  beginning  is  made  in  the  trench  which 
meets  at  E  the  principal  feeding-trench ;  the  latter 
is  closed  at  0,  and  the  water  soaks  into  the  soil  as 
far  as  D.     Frequently  a  field  that  is  to  be  watered 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  211 

is  entirely  submerged,  and  this  mode  of  irrigation  is 
called  submersion,  immersion  or  irrigation  by  shelv- 
ing beds.  It  not  unfrequently  happens  that  the 
water  occupies  a  lower  level  than  the  field  which  is 
to  be  irrigated,  and  then  it  becomes  necessary  to 
raise  it  by  means  of  machines  such  as  pumps  and 
hydraulic  rams. 

The  most  famous  of  all  systems  of  irrigation  is, 
of  coui*se,  the  watering  of  Egypt  by  the  Nile,  which 
overflows  the  whole  vast  plain  on  both  sides  of  its 
banks,  and  leaves  behind  a  thin  layer  of  incredibly 
rich  deposit.  Embankments  cross  the  country  in 
all  directions ;  villages  and  towns  are  built  on  natu- 
ral or  artificial  eminences,  and  while  the  land  is 
imder  water,  all  intercourse  is  carried  on  by  boat 
and  ferry.  Thus,  Egypt  is  perpetually  changing  ; 
to-day  a  lake,  to-morrow  a  blooming  garden  ;  now  a 
land  of  morasses,  teeming  with  malaria,  and  now  a 
parched  desert.  As  its  very  life  depends  upon  this 
system  of  irrigation,  and  the  needful  supply  of  water, 
the  inundation  has  been  celebrated  from  time  im- 
memorial, by  solemn  ceremonies  and  national  re- 
joicings. As  soon  as  the  river  begins  to  rise,  public 
criers  proclaim  the  joyful  fact,  passing  through  every 
district  and  town,  calling  out :  God  has  been  merci- 
ful to  the  fields !  Day  of  joyful  news !  At  the 
same  time  they  recite  animated  dialogues  with  the 
accompanying  boys,  changing  their  tenor  daily  with 
every  inch  that  the  Nile  has  risen,  and  receive  in 
return  a  small  fee  from  the  grateful  peasants.  When 
the  river  has  at  last  risen  20  to  21  feet,  the  time  has 
come  for  piercing  the  great  dam,  at  Cairo,  and  once 


212  WATEll. 

more  the  criers  are  seen  waving  flags  and  reciting 
sacred  songs  of  praise. 

After  a  night,  spent  by  the  majority  of  natives  in 
anxious  watchings  and  superstitious  worship,  the 
Government  orders,  on  the  appointed  day,  the  great 
canal  to  be  opened.  The  embankment  is  massive 
below,  but  dwindles  to  a  width  of  nine  feet  at  the 
top,  which,  though  22  feet  above  low-water  mark, 
is  not  quite  20  feet  above  the  canal,  the  banks  of 
which  are  higher  than  the  embankment.  On  these 
banks  of  the  canal  lie  the  ruins  of  a  stone  house, 
from  which  the  chief  officers  of  the  government  used 
to  witness  the  great  ceremony.  Nowadays  a  tent 
is  erected  here  for  the  officials,  whose  presence  is 
required  ;  and  all  around,  numerous  other  tents  are 
opened  for  curious  spectators,  who  are  all  weU 
provided  with  vast  quantities  of  rockets,  Bengal 
Ughts,  and  other  fireworks,  by  means  of  which  the 
night  is  turned  into  day.  Venders  of  coffee  and 
sweetmeats  abound,  and  the  whole  scene  is  strik- 
ing and  eminently  picturesque. 

In  the  afternoon,  already,  numbers  of  boats  crowd 
around  the  place  where  the  embankment  is  to  be 
pierced;  all  are  adorned  with  countless  flags  and 
bright  bunting ;  but  above  aU  shines  a  larger  vessel 
literally  covered  with  flags  and  lanterns,  which 
carries  several  small  guns,  and  has  a  silk  tent  on 
deck  for  the  ladies.  All  night  through  songs  and 
laughter,  music  and  solemn  anthems,  fiU  the  air, 
while  on  shore  an  immense  multitude  is  moving 
restlessly  to  and  fro,  in  anxious  expectation  of  the 
coming  ceremony.     In  the  meantime,  laborers  have 


THE  USES   OF   WATER.  215 

been  at  work  making  a  breach  in  the  massive  ram- 
part, so  that,  an  hour  before  sunset,  only  a  few 
inches  of  soil  restrain  the  waters  of  the  Nile.  Now 
the  high  officials  come  down  from  their  tent  to  the 
embankment,  sign  a  document  stating  the  precise 
height  of  the  water, — which  has  to  be  sent  to  Con- 
stantinople,— throw  a  few  purses,  filled  with  gold 
pieces,  among  the  workmen,  and,  as  soon  as  they 
have  disappeared,  a  government  boat  is  driven  hard 
against  the  embankment,  and  glides  down  with  the 
overflowing  river,  followed  by  all  the  gaily-decked 
vessels.  Thundering  guns,  shouting  crowds,  and 
bursting  rockets  are  mingled  in  one  great  explosion. 
Thus,  an  event  which  everywhere  else  would  be  a 
source  of  terror  and  infinite  suffering,  becomes  in 
Egypt  a  blessing  and  a  cause  for  universal  rejoic- 
ing. 

A  system  of  drainage  serves  to  carry  off  the 
superabundant  moisture,  which  might  otherwise  in- 
jure the  development  of  plants.  Trenches  or  drains 
are  dug,  and  cylindrical  tubes  are  laid  on  the  bot- 
tom. 

The  earth  which  has  been  excavated  is  thrown  back 
into  the  drain,  and  no  trace  remains  on  the  surface  ; 
but  the  superabundant  water  trickles  through  the 
soil,  sinks  to  the  bottom  of  the  drain,  and  enters 
the  x)ipes  by  way  of  their  joints.  These  pipes,  laid 
slanting,  carry  the  water  outside  of  the  field,  where 
they  are  emptied.  Occasionally  gutter  drains  are 
employed,  (see  Fig.  2,)  in  which  a  stone  channel  is 
substituted  for  the  earthen  or  glass  pipes,  and  cobble 
drains,  as  seen  in  Fig.  3.     As  the  drain  is  always 


214 


WAl^R. 


Fio.  1.— Tubular  Drain. 


under  ground,  and  it  is  still  necessary  to  know  how 
it  works,  openings  are  left  at  the  places  where  the 


Fia.  2. —Gutter  Drain. 


Fia.  3.— Cobble  Drain. 


Fja.  4— Drain  Well 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  215 

pipes  enter  the  main  trench,  (see  Fig.  4).  A  few 
spadefuls  of  soil  are  removed,  which  cover  the  open- 
ing, and  it  is  easily  ascertained  whether  the  water 
runs  ofif,  by  the  noise  which  it  makes  as  it  falls  from 
the  smaller  into  the  larger  pipe. 


"COLMATAGE,"  OK  THE  DEAINING  OF  MAjRSHES. 

We  have  seen  how,  every  year,  the  Nile  overflows 
its  banks,  and,  spreading  its  waters  over  the  adjoin- 
ing fields,  deposits  on  them  a  precious  mud,  which, 
by  its  fertilizing  properties,  constitutes  the  wealth 
of  the  immense  valley.  Nature  does  in  Egypt  her- 
seK  what  man  performs  in  other  countries  by  a  pro- 
cess which  is  termed  "  colmatage.''  The  object  of  this 
operation  is  to  cover  a  certain  portion  of  land  with 
muddy  water,  so  as  to  render  it  fit  for  cultivation. 
The  waters  are  allowed  to  stand  upon  it  for  some 
time,  and  a  sediment  is  deposited  ;  the  pure  water, 
relieved  of  its  earthy  particles,  is  then  let  off,  and 
replaced  by  new  sheets  of  thick,  muddy  water,  and 
this  process  is  continued  until  the  soil  has  been 
sufficiently  raised.  This  process  is  thus  the  means 
of  creating,  at  little  expense,  a  new  and  fertile  soil : 
it  is  thus,  for  instance,  that  the  valley  of  the  Isere, 
in  France,  has  been  rendered  so  productive.  All 
who  dwell  upon  the  banks  of  great  rivers  can,  in 
this  manner,  derive  wealth  and  prosperity  from  the 
water-courses  at  their  feet.  Agriculture  has  still  to 
discover  the  means  of  utiHzing  the  beds  of  marshes 
and  stagnant  pools,  where  the  water  covers  the  land 
with  a  miry  and  unwholesome  liquid.     These  nox- 


216  WATER. 

ious  pools  must  be  drained,  and  Ihen  the  place 
where  now  useless  reeds  and  marsh-plants,  poi- 
sonous and  noxious  herbs,  grow  in  hideous  luxuri- 
ance, will  be  filled  with  the  golden  stalks  of  wheat ; 
the  ripening  fields  will  sway  to  and  fro  under  the 
soft  breath  of  the  breeze,  and  their  ever-changing 
surface,  agitated  by  the  air,  will  resemble  the  undu- 
lations of  the  oceau. 


CHAPTEK  II. 


SALT  WATERS. — SEA  SALT. 


"  Nothing  in  nature  is  worthless  ;   and  there  is  no  substance  which  map 
cannot  turn  to  account." — Jean  Betnaud. 

Among  the  most  important  industrial  products,  a 
prominent  place  must  be  given  to  sea  salt,  or  chlo- 
ride of  sodium.  It  is  water  which  furnishes  us  with 
abundance  of  that  valuable  substance,  which,  under 
the  name  of  kitchen  salt,  appears  at  all  our  meals 
and  is  daily  employed  in  domestic  economy,  to  sea- 
son our  food  and  preserve  our  meat.  A  large  quan- 
tity is  annually  used  in  agriculture,  also ;  and  the 
industrial  arts  employ  a  considerable  amount  in 
producing  sulphate  of  soda,  chlorohydric  acid,  and 
several  chlorids  of  great  importance  in  connection 
with  chemistry. 

Chloride  of  sodium  is  procured  from  three  differ- 
ent sources  ;  from  beds  of  rock  salt,  from  salt  springs^ 
and  from  sea  water.  In  the  first  case,  when  rock 
salt  is  pure,  pits  and  subterranean  galleries  are  exca- 
vated, and  miners  set  to  work  to  bring  to  light  this 
valuable  commodity.  But  when  the  salt  is  not  of 
such  quality  as  would  repay  this  method  of  working 
the  mine,  a  simpler  and  cheaper  way  is  chosen.    In- 


218  WATER. 

stead  of  sending  miners  into  the  bowels  of  the  earth, 
fresh  water  is  made  to  do  the  work  of  man.  In  the 
neighborhood  of  Salzburg,  in  Suabia,  and  in  a  num- 
ber of  other  localities,  they  merely  sink  narrow 
shafts  going  down  into  the  salt  beds,  where  they  end 
in  empty  spaces,  compartments  termed  dissolving 
rooms.  Into  these  chambers  water  is  poured,  which 
dissolves  the  rock-salt  and  becomes  thoroughly  satu- 
rated with  it ;  it  is  then  pumped  up  to  the  surface, 
and  made  to  evaporate  under  the  action  of  heat. 
Thus,  at  a  small  expense,  crystals  of  salt  are  ob- 
tained, which  has  been  brought  up  from  the  earth's 
bowels  by  the  agency  of  water. 

Salt  springs  result  from  the  infiltration  of  water, 
which  in  its  travels  through  the  bowels  of  the  eartli 
has  encountered  beds  of  rock-salt.  These  waters 
are  rarely  saturated  with  salt ;  generally  they  con- 
tain not  more  than  three  to  four  per  cent.,  and  as  in 
this  case  the  volume  of  water  to  be  evaporated 
would  require  too  large  an  expenditure  of  caloric, 
the  saline  solution  is  previously  subjected  to  a  process 
of  concentration,  by  exposure  to  the  air  in  an  appa- 
ratus known  under  the  name  of  Graduation  Build- 
ings. 

These  structures  consist  of  walls  formed  of  bun- 
dles of  brushwood  within  wooden  frames  and  sur- 
mounted by  a  small  wooden  channel,  which  runs  the 
whole  length  of  the  building.  The  upper  trough 
throws  the  salt  water,  brought  up  by  the  pumps, 
sometimes  to  the  right  and  sometimes  to  the  left,  and 
this  water,  after  passing  through  the  mass  of  brush- 
wood falls  drop  by  drop  through  its  whole  thickness. 


THE   USES   OF   WATEE.  219 

Constantly  in  contact  with  currents  of  air,  it  is  sub- 
jected during  its  whole  passage  to  considerable  evap- 
oration, and  reaches  the  lower  basin  in  a  highly  con- 
centrated state.  If  the  operation  be  repeated  many 
times,  and  if  the  walls  be  situated  so  as  directly  to 
face  the  wind,  the  evaporation  takes  place  very 
rapidly.  In  the  salt  works  of  Sooden,  near  AUen- 
dorf,  in  Hesse,  a  water  which  contains  only  four  per 
cent,  of  salt  before  percolating  for  the  first  time 
through  the  graduating  building,  contains  twenty- 
two  per  cent,  after  having  been  filtered  half  a  dozen 
times.  This  mode  of  extracting  salt  is  in  frequent 
use  in  many  countries,  and  may  be  seen,  in  vast  pro- 
portions, in  the  interior  of  the  State  of  New  York. 
Here  lofty  walls  are  erected  which  attain  at  times  a 
length  of  over  fifteen  hundred  feet,  by  nearly  forty 
feet  in  height  and  twelve  in  width.  The  salt  water 
may  be  seen  trickling  slowly  through  the  piled  fag- 
gots, then  gradually  concentrating  till  it  becomes 
sufficiently  saturated  to  be  subjected  to  evaporation 
by  fire.  When  the  water  is  at  length  found  to  con- 
tain from  fourteen  to  twenty -two  per  cent,  of  salt  it  is 
exposed  to  the  action  of  the  heat,  which  causes  first 
a  deposit  of  all  the  impurities  it  contained,  and  then 
of  pure  chloride  of  sodium. 

The  richest  and  most  abundant  source  of  salt  is, 
however,  the  ocean. 

In  every  pint  of  sea-water  there  is  more  than  half 
an  ounce  of  solid  ingredient,  which  would  be  left  as 
a  dry,  crystalline  powder  on  the  liquid  being  evapo- 
rated by  heat.  If  all  the  water  of  the  Atlantic  were 
steamed  away,  there  would  remain  enough  salt  de- 


220  WATER. 

posited  from  it  to  cover  an  extent  of  seven  millions 
of  square  miles,  one  entire  mile  deep.  This  sub- 
stance consists  mainly  of  common  salt,  compounds 
of  lime  and  magnesia  in  a  soluble  form,  and  com- 
pounds of  potash  and  soda.  A  little  of  iron  and 
still  less  silver  make  up  the  whole.  The  question 
naturally  arises  :  Where  has  the  ocean  procured  this 
large  quantity  of  solid  substance,  these  dense  com- 
pounds ?  No  one  knows  how  far  away  it  may  have 
commenced  its  terrestrial  career  as  salt  brine,  but 
it  is  easily  seen  that  its  liquid  floods  never  could 
have  been  pure  water.  Rivers  themselves,  we  have 
seen,  are  not  pure ;  they  are  fed  by  rains,  and  these 
rains  wash  down  with  them,  as  they  course  through 
the  river-channels,  everything  which  they  can  dis- 
solve during  their  progress.  All  these  dissolved 
matters  are  carried  with  these  streams  into  the 
ocean.  Fresh  water  evaporates  from  the  ocean  con- 
tinually to  form  the  clouds  and  to  supply  the  foun- 
tains of  the  rain.  These  vapors,  however,  cannot 
carry  up  with  them  a  single  particle  of  saline  or 
earthy  material.  As  the  rivers,  therefore,  bring  down 
to  the  sea,  day  by  day,  fresh  stores  of  dissolved 
saline  solids,  and  as  none  of  these  stores  can  be  dis- 
sipated under  evaporation,  it  follows  that  from  this 
agency  alone  the  sea  must  at  lengtli  become  salt. 

In  almost  all  Southern  regions,  in  Europe  as  well 
as  on  our  own  seacoast,  sea-water  is  evaporated  in 
vast  natural  reservoirs,  called  salt-marshes,  by  the 
action  of  heat,  which  the  sun  lavishly  supplies. 
Upon  the  shores  of  the  Mediterranean  and  on  the 
seacoast  salt  water  is  made  to  flow  into  vast  basins 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  221 

where  it  evaporates  rapidly,  and  when  the  liquid 
has  attained  from  twenty  to  twenty-four  degrees 
by  the  famous  salt-meter  of  Beaume,  it  is  made  to 
flow  into  other  basins,  where  it  leaves  its  sea-salt. 

These  works  are  of  the  greatest  importance,  for 
the  sea-water  does  not  merely  contain  chloride  of 
sodium,  but  holds  in  solution  many  other  salts  from 
which  industry  may  materially  profit. 

The  following  table  will  show  the  ingredients  of 
two  quarts  of  sea-water : 


OCEAN.      MEDITEBBANEAN. 

gr-  gr. 

I  of  sodium 25.10  27.22 

Chloride   ...  J  of  potassium 0.50  0.70 

(  of  magnesium 3.50  6.14 

(  of  magnesia 5.78  7.02 

Sulphate....  I  ^^.j.^^ 0^5  0^5 

.'  of  magnesia 0.18  0.19 

Carbonate  .  .  J  of  lime 0.02  0.01 

(of  potash 0.23  0.21 

Iodides,  Bromides  and  organic  matters.        ?  ? 

Pure  Water 964.54  958.36 

Total 1000.00  1000.00 


Certain  lakes  contain  a  much  larger  proportion 
of  sea  salt. 

The  two  most  remarkable  lakes  on  earth — not 
only  on  account  of  their  biblical  importance,  but 
simply  in  their  physical  aspect — are  the  lakes  of 
Tiberias  and  the  Dead  Sea,  connected  with  each 
other  by  the  river  Jordan.  The  level  of  the  former, 
surrounded  by  the  most  picturesque  heights  on 
earth,  is  308  feet  lower  than  the  Mediterranean, 
and  the  Dead  Sea,  with  its  bitter  saline  water,  lies 


222  WATER. 

as  it  were  in  a  huge  pit  between  rugged  rocks,  salt 
cliffs,  and  desolate  barren  slopes,  at  a  depth  of  1,231 
feet  below  the  level  of  the  sea.  Instinctive  dread 
seizes  the  traveller  as  he  enters  this  low,  doomed 
region,  where  no  life  stirs,  and  not  a  sound  is  heard, 
and  he  feels  that  he  stands  on  a  scene  where  name- 
less crimes  were  punished  by  a  fearful  judgment. 

Salt  lakes  of  like  character  seem  to  be  a  charac- 
teristic feature  of  Asia  :  the  lakes  Urmia  and  Wan 
in  the  Taurus  are  both  so  saturated  with  salt  that 
no  fish  and  no  mollusks  can  live  in  their  waters,  and 
the  only  large  lake  of  which  Persia  can  boast, 
called  Urumiah,  though  receiving  seventeen  rivers, 
is  for  the  same  reason  lifeless,  while  for  miles 
around  the  whole  country  is  covered  with  a  snowy 
white  efflorescence.  Russia  derives  nearly  its  whole 
supply  of  salt — over  100,000  tons  annually — from  a 
single  source,  Lake  Elton,  which,  although  only  130 
square  miles  in  area,  is  so  full  of  salt  that  its  surface 
is  perpetually  covered  with  a  thick  layer,  shining 
brightly  in  the  sunlight,  and  thus  procuring  for  it 
the  local  name  of  the  Gold  Lake. 

The  waters  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  of  Utah,  which 
is  some  forty  miles  in  length,  and  has  a  bottom  of 
fine  white  sand,  and  a  margin  of  encrusted  salt,  will 
float  the  most  unskillful  of  swimmers.  They  support 
no  living  thing,  and  the  banks  are  barren  of  vege- 
tation and  as  desolate  as  those  of  the  Dead  Sea. 

The  waters  of  salt  marshes,  after  having  aban- 
doned the  chloride  of  sodium  which  they  held  in 
solution,  contain,  beside  sulphuric  acid  in  the  form 
of  sulphates,  soda,  potash,  and  magnesia,  commodi- 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  223 

ties  which  cannot  be  obtained  in  some  countries, 
and  have  to  be  imported  from  abroad  at  a  high 
price.  Hence,  great  efforts  are  made,  for  instance, 
in  France^  to  obtain  these  valuable  ingredients  from 
the  sea  directly,  and  immense  amounts  of  capital 
and  skill  are  applied  to  these  new  branches  of  in- 
dustry. Sulphate  of  soda  is  employed  in  the  man- 
ufacture both  of  soda  and  of  glass  ;  it  is  one  of  the 
most  important  chemical  products,  and  the  discovery 
of  a  method  by  which  it  can  be  extracted  from  the 
ocean  most  therefore  be  considered  as  one  of  the 
most  satisfactory  results  of  science  of  our  age.  In 
order  to  isolate  this  salt,  the  temperature  of  the  salt 
marsh  waters  has  to  be  lowered  to  zero,  a  process 
which  formerly  entailed  considerable  expense,  but 
which  is  now  effected  at  a  much  cheaper  rate  b}^  an 
ingenious  contrivance  for  producing  artificial  cold, 
which  we  will  describe  in  the  following  chapter. 


CHAPTEK  III. 

ICE   AND   ITS   ARTIFICIAL   MANUFACTUHE. 

"  Some  physicians  consider  ice,  which  is  one  of  the  most  refreshing  and 
useful  tonics  in  hot  countries,  as  being  also  a  powerful  sedative." 

Everybody  is  familiar  with  the  varied  uses  of  ice, 
and  knows,  also,  that  it  preserves  organic  bodies 
from  putrefaction.  The  decomposition  of  organic 
substances  requiring  a  certain  degree  of  heat  and 
fermentation,  becomes  impossible  below  a  certain 
degree  of  temperature.  If,  therefore,  ice  is  placed 
in  small  quantities  round  fresh  meat,  fish,  etc.,  these 
perishable  articles  of  food  may  be  kept  for  several 
dajs,  and  when  the  temperature  is  below  that  of 
melting  ice,  the  length  of  time  during  which  they 
can  be  preserved  is  still  more  considerable.  In 
Russia  and  Siberia  animals  intended  for  consump- 
tion are  slaughterd  at  the  beginning  of  winter ;  they 
are  frozen,  and  the  cold  preserves  them  a  long  time ; 
in  this  way  people  save  the  food  which  the  cattle 
would  otherwise  have  required  during  the  winter. 
In  the  far  north,  in  Greenland,  and  Davis's  Straits, 
those  English  sailors  who  are  engaged  in  the  seal 
fisheries,  expose  beef  to  the  icy  air,  and  are  in  this 
way  able  to  have  fresh  meat  during  the  whole  of 


THE   USES  OF   WATER.  226 

their  long  voyage.  In  Siberia  fossil  elephants  and 
mammoths  have  been  found,  admirably  preserved  in 
ice ;  the  flesh  of  these  antediluvian  animals,  kept 
during  many  thousands  of  years  in  its  thick  wrap- 
ping of  ice,  was  as  fresh  as  that  of  animals  killed  at 
the  moment. 
In  domestic  economy  ice  is  daily  used  for  the  pre- 


^^■'"HNdih" 


Cream  Freezer. 


paration  of  cooling  drinks  and  for  the  manufacture 
of  sherbet,  of  which  such  quantities  are  consumed 
during  the  summer  months.  The  juice  of  fruits  and 
the  cream,  which  are  to  be  used,  are  put  in  a  freezer 
and  frozen  by  plunging  into  a  refrigerating  mixture 
of  broken  ice  and  salt.  Medicine  also  finds  in  ice  a 
valuable  specific  against  certain  maladies,  a  tonic 
and  a  preventive  against  hemorrhage  of  the  lungs, 
nausea,  etc.     The  enormous  quantity  of  ice  taken 


226  WATER. 

South  every  year  at  great  expense,  in  ships  from  all 
the  northern  countries,  shows  the  great  importance 
which  machines  for  the  artificial  production  of  ice 
have  recently  acquired. 

Drinks  cooled  by  ice  are,  however,  by  no  means 
a  fashion  of  yesterday ;  for  the  ancients  enjoyed 
anything  cool  in  summer  as  much  as  we  do  now. 
The  Bomans  had  learned  how  to  preserve  snow  and 
ice  in  caves  which  answered  the  same  purpose  as 
our  ice-houses,  and  snow-water  was  a  favorite  bev- 
erage. At  night,  carts  covered  with  straw,  brought 
the  snow  of  the  Apennines  to  the  ancient  capital  o£ 
the  world,  and  galleys  came  to  Italy  laden  with  snow 
from  Sicily,  which  was  considered  superior  to  any 
other  by  the  gourmets  of  that  day,  because  it  was 
found  in  the  vicinity  of  burning  craters,  filled  with 
boiling  lava.  A  temple  had  been  erected  specially 
to  keep  snow  during  the  summer,  and  the  priests  of 
Vulcan  derived  from  its  sale  an  enormous  income. 
Christian  priests  afterwards  kept  up  this  good 
custom,  and  the  Bishop  of  Catanea,  as  late  as  the 
latter  part  of  the  last  century,  obtained  20,000 
francs  a  year  from  the  sale  of  a  snow-bank  which 
he  owned  on  Mount  Etna.  At  the  present  day, 
as  in  classic  times,  the  Ural  and  Mount  Caucasus 
provide  for  the  East.  Ice  packed  in  felt  cloths  and 
covered  with  straw,  is  transported  on  horseback. 
In  Europe  the  consumption  of  ice  has  not  as  yet 
become  general ;  but  in  our  own  country  it  has  at- 
tained enormous  proportions.  Collected  during 
winter  in  the  lakes  of  Canada  and  the  Northern 
States,  it  is  cut  into  blocks  by  means  of  saws,  and 


THE   USES  OF   WATER.  227 

transported  to  Boston,  whence  ships  convey  to  the 
Antilles,  the  Cape,  the  East  and  West  Indies,  and 
even  to  Australia.  The  city  of  Boston  alone  con- 
sumes annually  several  hundred  thousand  tons  of 
ice,  and  nearly  10,000  workmen  were  employed  last 
year  in  this  single  branch  of  commerce.  In  New 
York  city,  in  1870,  the  consumption  of  ice  amounted' 
to  thousands  of  tons,  a  large  amount  of  which  was 
exported.  Norway  is  the  ice-house  of  Europe,  and 
furnishes  the  South  with  that  refreshing  commodity, 
supplying  even  more  northern  countries,  and  often 
Paris  itseK  with  ice,  when  the  Seine  and  the  lakes  of 
the  Bois  de  Boulogne  have  been  scarcely  congealed 
in  consequence  of  too  mild  a  winter. 

Goubaud's  Apparatus. — Family  Kefrigerators. 
— In  order  to  convert  a  certain  volume  of  water  into 
ice  it  is  necessary  to  freeze  this  water,  or  in  other 
words,  to  subtract  its  heat.  Cold  is  not,  as  was 
long  imagined,  a  special  physical  agent,  with  pro- 
perties exactly  opposed  to  those  of  heat ;  on  the 
contrary,  it  is  a  purely  relative  quality,  and  we  only 
say  that  a  body  is  cold  when  we  compare  it  with  a 
warm  body.  How  is  the  water  which  we  wish  to 
freeze,  to  be  cooled  artificially  ?  How  is  it  to  be 
deprived  of  its  heat?  Nothing  is  simpler,  if  we 
only  know  how  to  apply  certain  physical  laws.  It 
is  well  known  that  whenever  a  substance  changes 
its  physical  condition,  when  it  passes  from  a  solid 
into  a  liquid,  or  from  a  Hquid  into  a  gaseous  state, 
it  draws  heat  from  that  body  with  which  it  is  in 
contact,  and  consequently  cools  it  in  proportion.    If 


228  WATER. 

you  let  a  drop  of  ether  fall  on  your  hand/  the  liquid 
will  disappear  from  your  sight ;  it  will  become  vol- 
atilized, and  pass  almost  instantaneously  from  the 
liquid  to  the  gaseous  state ;  but  in  the  very  act  of 
volatihzing  it  will  deprive  your  hand  of  its  heat, 
and  thus  give  you  the  impression  of  a  sudden  chilL 
If  you  throw  a  handful  of  nitrate  of  ammonia  into 


Goubaud's  Appai-atus. 

a  glass  of  water,  the  salt  will  dissolve  by  the  mere 
action ;  from  a  solid,  it  will  pass  into  a  liquid  state, 
and  a  considerable  lowering  of  the  temperature  will 
accompany  this  change.  These  simple  experiments 
form  the  basis  of  all  freezing  machines.  The  above 
illustration  shows  a  number  of  tin  cylinders,  so  ar- 


THE   USES   OF   WATEE.  229 

ranged,  in  a  wooden  tub,  as  to  revolve  round  an 
axle  turned  by  a  handle.  Into  these  cjhnders  the 
water  is  poured  which  is  to  be  congealed.  The  ex- 
ternal tub  is  full  of  water,  into  which  a  small  quan- 
tity of  nitrate  of  ammonia  is  thrown.  The  salt 
melts  and  absorbs  the  heat  from  the  cylinders,  with 
which  it  is  in  contact,  and  from  the  water  which 
they  contain  ;  and  if  we  turn  the  handle  in  such  a 
way  as  to  make  the  salt  melt  more  rapidly,  by  the 
agitation  produced  by  means  of  spiral  metal-screws, 
it  will  not  be  long  ere  we  see  blocks  of  ice  formed 
in  the  cylinders,  originally  filled  with  water. 

On  this  same  principle  househould  freezers  are 
made.  Several  concentric  spaces  are  alternately 
filled  with  water,  and  with  a  refrigerating  mixture.* 

•  There  are  various  compositions  which  may  be  made  use  of  in 
preparing  a  refrigerating  mixture. 

MATEBIAIiS  USED.  LOWEBINO  OF  TEMPEBATUBB. 

S^as^l*' -  P^^«-  i  From  50°  to  10° 

Powdered  ice, —     *'      ) 

Water, 10  parts,  j 

Nitrate  of  ammonia, ..  5      "     >  From  50°  to  3° 

Saltpetre, 7      ''     ) 

Water,.. 1  part    Uj,om  50no  14° 

Nitrate  of  ammonia, ..  1     "      ) 

Sulphate  of  soda, ....  8  parts.  J  ^^^  g^o  j.^  2° 

Chlorohydric  acid, 5      **      ) 

The  employment  of  acids  is  always  disagreeable  or  dangerous, 
and  should,  if  possible,  be  avoided.  Nitrate  of  ammonia  is 
preferable.  When  the  solution  is  no  longer  cold,  it  is  advisable 
to  evaporate  it,  and  thus  to  produce  salt  which  will  be  good  for 
any  other  purpose  afterwards. 


230 


WATER. 


The  water  in  A  and  in  B  is  surrounded  by  the 
freezing  mixture,  C,  O,  and  is  speedily  transformed 
into  ice  ;  in  the  lower  part  of  the  apparatus  a  valve, 
opened  by   means   of    a   small  lever,  permits   the 


Household  Freezer, 


melted  ice- water  to  flow  out,  and  it  falls  into  a  basin 
in  which  are  placed  the  bottles  of  wine,  which  are 
speedily  iced  by  the  action  of  the  cold.  ^ 

CARiife*s  Apparatus. — Neither  of  the  apparatus 
which  we  have  just  been  describing,  is  by  any 
means  perfect,  and  their  practical  use  does  not  cor- 


THE   USES   OF  WATER. 


231 


respond  to  their  theoretical  vahie.  The  one  we  are 
about  to  describe  is  very  different.  It  consists  of  a 
cyhnder,  in  communication,  by  means  of  tubes,  with 
a  vessel  in  the  shape  of  a  truncated  cone,  having  a 
cavity  in  the  centre.  This  apparatus,  every  part  of 
which  is  kept  close,  is  furnished  with  a  thermometer 
which,  without  communicating  with  the  interior  of 
the  cylinder,  indicates  its  temperature.     We  first 


SJ;^iS;^^% 


Carry's  Apparatus. 


heat  the  cylinder,  whilst  the  truncated  vessel  in  the 
centre  sinks  into  the  cold  water  of  a  large  tub  ;  in 
its  central  cavity  is  placed  a  metallic  cylinder,  filled 
with  water.  When  the  thermometer  reaches  266° 
the  furnace  (a  stove  or  pipe)  is  replaced  by  a  tub  of 
water ;.  the  vessel  cools  off  perceptibly,  and  soon  we 
are  able  to  take  from  the  cavity  a  block  of  ice.  Ice 
can  thus  be  produced  by  means  of  a  few  pieces  of 


232  WATER. 

coal,  and  the  apparatus,  after  having  once  workeil 
properly,  is  ready  to  begin  again  without  the  neces- 
sity of  changing  anything.  All  that  is  needed  is  to 
heat  once  more  the  large  cylinder.  But  how  does 
this  apparatus  work  ?  Let  us  explain.  Its  mechan- 
ism is  extremely  simple.  The  cyUnder  contains 
ammoniac  gas,  dissolved  in  water.  When  it  is 
heated,  the  gas  escapes  from  the  liquid  and  passes 
into  the  receiver,  after  having  passed  through  all  the 
connecting  tubes.  But  on  arriving  there  it  finds  no 
outlet ;  nevertheless,  the  heat  continually  disengages 
from  the  water  fresh  quantities  of  ammoniac  gas, 
which  thus  accumulates,  and,  being  subjected  to  con- 
siderable pressure,  becomes  liquefied.  This  is  the 
moment  when  the  generating  cylinder  is  plunged 
into  a  cold  tub  ;  and,  thus  chilled,  the  water  is  ca- 
pable of  dissolving  once  more  the  ammoniac  gas. 

The  gas  which  is  liquefied  in  the  receiver,  returns 
to  a  gaseous  state,  and  a  corresponding  absorption 
of  heat  accompanies  this  change,  at  the  expense  of 
the  water  contained  in  the  central  cavity ;  this 
cooled-oif  water  now  changes  into  ice.  This  shows 
how  extremely  simple  this  apparatus  is,  and  how 
ingenious  its  mechanism,  which  leaves  all  previous 
inventions  far  behind.  It  is  still,  however,  capable 
of  improvement,  as  its  inventor,  Mr.  Carre,  has  him- 
self proved.  Its  small  dimensions  prevent  its  fui - 
nishing  large  quantities  of  ice  at  once  ;  it  cannot  be 
made  to  work  continuously,  and  could  never  be  of 
much  industrial  value.  Another  apparatus,  however, 
has  been  invented,  constructed  on  a  much  larger 
icale,  and   has   successfully   solved   the   important 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  233 

probleDi  of  the  artificial  manufacture  of  ice,  or,  what 
amounts  to  the  same  thing — the  production  of  cold. 
A  large  boiler,  A,  contains  the  solution  of  ammonia. 
The  gas  escapes,  and  becomes  liquefied,  in  a  reservoir, 
B,  cooled  off  as  it  is  by  the  water,  which  falls  from 
a  reservoir,  C.  The  liquid  ammonia  penetrates  into 
the  hollow  sides  of  the  refrigerator,  G,  which  con- 
tains cyhnders  filled  with  the  water  that  is  to  be 
frozen.  During  this  time  an  especial  arrangement 
permits  this  exhaust  water  (or  waste  water)  of  the 
boilers  to  penetrate,  after  having  cooled  off,  into  a 
vessel,  E,  connected  with  the  cylinder,  D,  in  which 
the  ammonia  is  distilled,  that  has  been  volatilized 
in  the  refrigerator.  The  original  hquid,  thus  re- 
generated, is  conveyed  into  the  boiler  by  means  of  a 
pump,  F.^  This  apparatus  acts  with  great  regularity, 
and  it  is  astonishing  to  see  large  blocks  of  ice  issu- 
ing from  this  refrigerator,  which  are  formed  as  if  by 
magic,  without  any  visible  agent  to  show  the  secret 
of  their  formation. 


*  A  detailed  description  of  the  numerous  parts  of  this  appara- 
tus requires  too  voluminous  an  explanation  for  our  space.  But 
further  details  may  be  found  in  the  Report  of  M.  Pouillet,  in 
the  Publications  of  the  Society  of  Encouragement,  for  1863. 
raris.  1863. 


CHAPTEK  IV. 

MINERAL  WATERS — POPULAR  ERRORS. 

"  There  ai-e  to  be  found  in  certain  localities  waters  either  warm  or  cold, 
which,  by  their  properties,  show  that  they  are  beneficial  in  cases  of  sickness, 
an  J  which  appear  to  issue  from  the  eai-th  for  the  sole  benefit  of  mankind.'' 

PlJNT. 

Nothing  has  more  exercised  the  talents  of  inven- 
tors of  incredible  stories  than  the  origin  of  springs 
and  mineral  waters.  The  proof  of  this  is  found  in 
the  many  miraculous  stories  and  strange  statements 
which  have  been  borrowed  from  ancient  authors, 
who  are  the  best  interpreters  of  popular  credulity 

According  to  Theophrastus,  the  Crathis,  a  river  in 
Magna  Grsecia,  turned  the  animals  white  who  drank 
of  its  waters.  According  to  Ovid,  Vibius  Sequester, 
and  Antigonus,  the  waters  of  the  Sybaris  dyed  the 
hair  a  golden-yellow : 

"Electro  similes  faciunt  auroque  capillos." 

Ovid, 

Shepherds  who  wished  to  have  white  sheep 
led  them  to  drink  from  the  river  Aliacmon, 
while  those  who  desired  them  black  or  brown 
watered  them  in  the  river  Axius,  The  waters  of 
the  Alcos   caused  hair  to  grow  on  the  body.     In 


THE   USES   OP  WATER.  235 

Boeotia,  near  the  temple  of  Troplionius,  opposite  the 
river  Orchomeiios  there  were  two  springs,  one  of 
which  had  the  power  of  quickening  the  memory, 
while  the  other  destroyed  it.  One  was  called 
Mnemosene  the  other  Lethe. 

Yarro  states  that  near  Cessus  there  flowed  a 
brook  called  Nous,  the  Greek  word  for  Mind,  the 
waters  of  which  made  people  bright,  while  on  the 
other  hand  there  was,  in  the  Island  of  Ceos,  a  spring 
which  rendered  him  who  drank  of  it  stupid.  There 
was  stiU  another  at  Zama,  which  endowed  the 
human  voice  with  an  admirable  strength  and  tone.* 

The  waters  of  the  Lyncestes,  in  Thrace,  pro- 
duced a  slight  intoxication,  while  on  the  contrary, 
according  to  Eudoxius,  the  waters  of  the  Chtorius 
made  wine  distasteful. 

Theopompus,  the  celebrated  author  of  the  "  Won- 
ders of  Nature,"  quotes,  besides,  a  great  number  of 
examples  of  intoxicating  waters.  Mucian  goes  still 
further ;  he  seriously  affirms  that  in  the  Isle  of 
Andros  a  fountain  consecrated  to  Bacchus  furnished 
real  wine  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year.  At  Cyzicus 
Cupid's  fountain  cured  love.  Cresias  states,  and 
Antigonus  of  Carystus  confirms  the  fact,  that  there 
existed  in  India  a  pool  called  Side,  on  the  surface  of 
which  nothing — not  even  a  dead  leaf — could  float. 
Perjured  persons  could  not  endure  the  waters  of  the 
river  Olachas,  in  Bithynia  ;  they  were  burnt  therein 
as  in  boiling  oil.  In  Thrace  certain  waters  brought 
instantaneous  death  to  those  who  drank  of  them. 

*  Vitruvius,  Book  VI.,  ch.  14.    Agricola  explains  this  property  by  supposing 

that  it  was  due  to  the  sandaricum  contained  in  the  waters. 


236  WATEll. 

K  we  believe  Vibius  Sequester,  persons  who  bathed 
repeatedly  in  Lake  Triton,  in  Thrace,  were  changed 
into  birds.  The  inhabitants  of  Lycia,  according  to 
Pliny,  consulted  the  Fountain  of  Limyra  on  the  sub- 
ject of  future  events,  by  throwing  food  to  the  fish 
which  dwelt  there.  If  the  response  was  favorable 
the  fish  eagerly  seized  their  prey  ;  but  if  otherwise, 
they  pushed  the  offering  aside  with  their  tails.  At 
Colophon,  there  was  a  fountain  which  endowed  with 
divining  faculties  all  who  drank  of  it,  but  shortened 
at  the  same  time  the  thread  of  their  life.  This 
fountain  was  situated  in  a  cavern  consecrated  to  the 
Carian  Apollo,  and  Tacitus  tells  us  that  it  was 
there  Germanicus  received  the  prophetic  intimation 
of  his  premature  death. 

The  springs  of  Hippocrene  and  Castalia  inspired 
poets.  The  Fountain  of  Diodona  revealed  the  fu- 
ture by  the  soft  murmurs  of  its  waters,  and  an  aged 
priestess  constantly  seated  on  its  banks  interpreted 
the  mysterious  language  which  she  alone  understood. 
The  Fountain  of  Patras  foretold  the  fate  of  sick 
people.  A  mirror  was  placed  on  the  surface  of  the 
water,  and  after  an  invocation  to  the  Deities,  the 
image  of  the  sick  person  appeared  and  was  beheld 
dead  or  alive,  according  to  the  turn  which  his  mala- 
dy was  to  take.  The  Fountain  of  Apone,  near 
Padua,  had  a  great  renown  among  the  ancients,  who 
consulted  it  frequently.  Playing-dice  were  thrown 
into  it,  and  the  number  thus  obtained  furnished  the 
answers. 

Nor  is  it  only  from  the  records  of  ancient  Greece 
and  Italy  that  we  derive  accounts  of  such  supersti- 


THE  USES   OE   WATER.  237 

fcious  legends.  Mediaeval  tradition  and  the  folk-lore 
of  every  time  and  country  abound  in  similar  belief 
concerning  the  healing  efficacy  of  certain  waters.  A 
great  number  continue  still  in  force  in  certain  parts 
of  Europe,  and  the  ignorant  peasantry  of  many  a 
country  believe  in  curious  tales  on  the  subject, 
which  they  relate  with  a  sense  of  awe,  and  never 
doubt  for  a  moment.  The  pure  waters  of  our 
springs  and  mirror-like  lakes,  however,  conceal  no 
longer  such  mysteries.  The  sources  whence  the 
ancients  drew  are  dried  up  for  us,  or  rather,  their 
waters  no  longer  give  forth  the  same  murmur. 
Farewell  then,  lovely  Naiads,  timid  nymphs,  who  used 
to  hide  among  the  reeds,  farewell !  Farewell,  grace- 
ful Undines,  charming  divinities  of  the  waves  !  We 
shall  never  behold  you  more.  Touching  poetry  of 
fables,  ingenious  dreams  of  our  fancy,  your  reign  has 
passed  away  forever ! 

THE  UNCERTAINTIES  OF  SCIENCE. 
Extremes  meet.  To  exaggerated  credulity  suc- 
ceeds an  equally  exaggerated  skepticism.  After  hav- 
ing too  easily  admitted  the  most  marvellous  stories, 
a  thorough  change  came  about  and  the  health-bring- 
ing action  of  mineral  springs  was  completely  denied. 
Nowadays,  however,  we  have  returned  to  more  rea- 
sonable views ;  and  no  one  at  present  doubts  the 
efficacy  of  mineral  springs  in  a  great  number  of 
maladies.  It  is,  however,  a  very  generally  prevailing 
opinion — and  not  without  good  reason — that  this 
efficacy  of  the  waters  is  due  in  a  great  measure  to 
the  beneficial  influence  of  a  pleasant  journey  and  to 


238  WATER. 

the  salubrity  of  the  country,  in  which  health  may 
be  as  contagious  as  sickness  is  elsewhere.  For  nat- 
urally seasons  of  repose  and  a  change  of  scene  with 
a  busy  man  living  in  society  and  agitated  by  a  host 
of  artificial  or  natural  passions,  heal  or  at  least  sear 
over  the  wounds  of  the  soul  and  react  upon  the 
body.  But  after  making  every  allowance  for  such 
causes,  independent  of  the  healthful  action  of  the 
waters,  it  must  be  admitted  that  certain  waters  have 
genuine  medicinal  virtues — virtues  attested  even  by 
animals,  on  whom  imagination  cannot  very  well  be 
supposed  to  react. 

How  do  mineral  waters  act?  Doubtless  through 
the  salts  which  they  contain,  but  on  this  delicate  sub- 
ject there  prevails  still  much  uncertainty.  The  analy- 
sis of  mineral  waters  is  for  the  chemist  a  difficult  prob- 
lem to  solve  ;  he  may  find  in  the  water  carbonic,  sul- 
phuric or  silicious  acid,  etc.,  chlorine,  iodine,  potash, 
soda  or  magnesia,  but  how  are  these  elements  com- 
bined ?  It  is  this  which  cannot  certainly  be  known. 
We  have,  indeed,  in  our  hands  the  disjointed  mate- 
rials of  the  building ;  but  how  are  these  materials 
combined  and  connected  with  each  other  ?  If  we 
knew  this,  we  might  hope  to  find  that  there  existed 
between  the  water  and  its  constituent  elements  a 
relation,  which  might  permit  us  to  divine  its  medici- 
nal properties  beforehand.  But  this  is  by  no  means 
the  case ;  and  observation  usually  contradicts  the 
deductions  of  theory.  There  scarcely  ever  exists 
any  continuous  connection  between  the  chemical 
analysis  of  a  spring  and  its  effects  upon  health. 
Mineral  waters  act  by  feeble  doses;   they  are  ho- 


THE   USES   OF    WATER.  .  239 

moeopathic  remedies,  and  their  action  escapes  the  in- 
vestigation of  science.  Their  composition  is,  more- 
over, not  yet  perfectly  well  understood,  as  they 
generally  contain  certain  indefinable  organic  sub- 
stances, which  chemistry  has  not  yet  analyzed. 
Many  a  mineral  spring  contains  only  a  minute  propor- 
tion of  iron,  and  yet  acts  with  more  efficacy  than  all 
medicinal  remedies.  Frequently,  when  physicians 
find  all  specifics  fail,  they  see  unexpected  effects  pro- 
duced by  springs,  and  yet  the  invalid  has  probably 
taken  only  a  few  glasses  of  water  each  day  ;  perhaps 
he  has  not  taken  more  than  the  hundredth  part  of 
a  grain  of  iron. 

There  is,  therefore,  in  chalybeate  and  similar 
springs,  something  more  than  the  mineral  held  in 
solution.  They  contain,  besides,  organic  matter,  and 
often  in  large  proportions  ;  this  fact  has  been  usually 
ignored,  but  we  believe  erroneously,  since  it  is  possi- 
ble in  these  elements  that  the  therapeutic  efficacy 
rests,  which  is  sought  for  in  vain  everywhere  else. 
"  A  mineral  water,"  as  Dr.  Constantin  James  has 
well  observed,*  "  is  not  an  ordinary  saline  solution  ; 
it  is,  on  the  contrary,  a  special  beverage,  which  has 
its  own  elements  and  its  special  flavor,  which  Na-  " 
ture  has  mixed  by  a  kind  of  occult  chemistry,  and  of 
which  she  has  till  now  preserved  the  secret  among 
her  treasures.  Even  if  it  were  known,  the  difficulty 
of  making  up  the  prescription  would  still  remain. 
For  a  long  period,  we  fear,  Chaptal's  saying,  so  true 

*  See  "A  Practical  Guide  to  Mineral  Waters,"  by  Dr.  C.  James, 
i  vol.  (Victor  Masson,  Publisher.  We  have  made  many  extracts 
from  that  excellent  work.) 


240  WATER. 

and  so  frequently  quoted,  will  still  hold  good :  'When 
we  analyze  mineral  waters  we  dissect  a  corpse.'  " 


CLASSIFICATION. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  temperature  of  our  globe 
rises  one  degree  with  every  one  hundred  feet  below 
the  surface.  Now,  although  most  springs  begin 
their  hfe  on  mountain  slopes  and  in  valleys,  many 
also  sink  deep  into  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  where 
they  are  heated  by  the  central  heat  of  our  globe  ; 
when  they  come  up  to  the  surface  they  are  hence 
often  so  hot  that  they  require  many  hours  before 
they  can  be  used  for  the  purpose  of  bathing.  Hot 
springs  come,  consequently,  from  the  greatest  depths 
when  their  temperature  is  highest — unless,  as  is 
sometimes  the  case,  they  are  heated  by  volcanic 
causes.  All  water  we  have  seen  is  a  solvent,  but 
hot  water  possesses  the  greatest  power  of  solution  ; 
hence  hot  springs  are  most  apt  to  hold  mineral  sub- 
stances Avhich  they  have  dissolved  on  the  way,  and 
now  bring  up  with  them  for  the  good  of  man.  The 
more  ramified  the  system  of  these  springs,  and  the 
richer  the  soil  in  mineral  elements,  the  more  power- 
ful will  be  the  spring  in  its  effects  upon  health.  Nor 
must  it  be  overlooked  that  these  mineral  substances 
may,  on  the  way,  enter  into  chemical  combina- 
tions with  each  other,  and  thus  produce  entirely 
new  properties  in  the  health-giving  waters. 

Some  of  these  hot  springs  rise,  strangely  enough, 
under  the  ocean,  others  on  the  top  of  the  Alps ;  on  the 
Himalaya  Mountains  several  gush  forth  from  under 
perpetual  snow,  at  a   height  of  12,000  feet.     Gene- 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  241 

rally  they  break  forth  from  wild,  deep*  glens,  be- 
tween gigantic,  barren  masses  of  rock,  or  they 
come  flowing  out  from  narrow  passes  inaccessible  to 
man.  Frequently  these  hot  springs  owe  their  origin 
to  volcanoes  in  the  neighborhood ;  for  it  has. been 
observed  that  in  such  localities  hot  vapors  arise 
from  every  cleft  and  crevice.  Tuscany  abounds  in 
pools  containing  a  dark,  miry  water,  known  as 
Lagoni.  At  short  intervals  hot  vapors  arise  from 
the  centre,  accompanied  by  low  thunder,  and  the 
water  is  thrown  up  in  a  conical  shape.  If  there  is 
no  water  in  the  pools,  mud  and  even  small  stones 
are  thus  tossed  up,  or  new  openings  are  made  in  all 
directions,  giving  a  hideous  appearance  to  the  coun- 
try, and  destroying  by  their  sulphurous  exhalations 
all  vegetation  within  reach.  The  soil  is  burning 
hot  and  sounds  hollow  under  foot.  But  even  here 
man  has  known  how  to  make  nature  subservient  to 
his  purposes :  the  water  of  these  pools  contains  a 
large  proportion  of  borax,  which  is  carefully  gath- 
ered and  becomes  a  source  of  prosperity  for  a  whole 
neighborhood. 

Many  mineral  springs,  wines  from  the  cellarage  of 
mother  earth, 

*'  Springing  through  the  veins  of  the  mountains, " 

come  up  tolerably  well  iced ;  others  froth  over  at 
various  degrees  of  heat,  from  gentle  warmth  up  to 
the  temperature  of  boiling  water.  Some  springs 
are  bright  and  sparkling  ;  others,  like  fruity  port, 
are  deeply  tinged  with  alkaline  and  other  earthy 
matter.     But  the  greatest  marvel  is  that  each  spring 


242  WATEll. 

sliould  absorlj  its  definite  proportion  of  solid  and 
gaseous  contents  unchangingly  through  all  time,  so 
as  to  present  always,  like  the  ocean  and  the  atmo- 
sphere, that  identical  character  which  constitutes 
its  settled  value  :  a  prescription  carefully  and  un- 
failingly prepared. 

We  give  briefly  the  most  familiar  varieties  of  min- 
eral waters,  classified  not  upon  direct  scientific 
analysis,  but  according  to  their  popular  designation. 

1st.  Gaseous  waters,  generally  cold,  contain  car- 
bonic acid  in  solution  ;  and  as  chemically  pure 
water  is  unfit  for  use,  these,  on  the  contrary,  are 
eminently  refreshing,  and  when  coming  in  contact 
with  the  air,  set  free  a  large  portion  of  the  dissolved 
gas,  which  rises  in  pearly  beads  similar  to  those  on 
artificial  seltzer  water. 

The  water  of  the  Bourboule,  on  the  right  side  of 
the  river  Dordogne,  gushes  from  the  centre  of  an 
ancient  Koman  bath.  It  contains  a  large  propor- 
tion of  free  carbonic  acid.  Seltz,  Ems  and  Wies- 
baden, in  Germany,  are  also  well  known  examples 
of  natural  gaseous  waters.  Ems  is  one  of  the  most 
popular  watering  plac6s  on  the  banks  of  the  Rhine ; 
its  numerous  springs  are  gaseous  and  alkaline,  con- 
taining carbonic  acid,  and  besides  a  little  iron,  and 
some  salts  on  a  basis  of  lime  and  magnesia.  These 
waters  are  almost  always  taken  internally,  though 
they  are  also  sometimes  applied  externally,  and 
have  a  reputation  for  removing  sterility.  Gerning 
informs  us  that  Agrippina  often  frequented  the 
baths  of  Ems,  and  that  they  perhaps  had  the  melan- 
choly honor  of  having  led  to  the  birth  of  Caligula. 


THE   USES   UF  WATER.  243 

2nd.  Salt-springs  may  be  gaseous  or  therm  al.  The 
waters  of  Plombieres,  belonging  to  this  class,  are 
thermal,  and  contain  only  a  small  quantity  of  saline 
matter,  consisting  of  alkaline  bicarbonates,  of  bi- 
carbonate of  iron,  and  of  sulphate  of  soda,  etc. 
Plombieres  is  situated  in  a  very  low  valley  crossed  in 
its  whole  length  by  a  torrent  called  "  L'Eau  Groune." 
The  water  of  its  spring  is  generally  hidden  from 
view  and  sheltered  by  a  vaulted  building.  The  Ro- 
man Baths,  situated  in  the  centre  of  the  town,  on 
the  site  of  a  Roman  piscina,  and  the  Napoleon  Bath, 
one  of  the  principal  edifices  of  the  town,  are  famed 
far  and  wide,  and  are  constantly  visited  by  numbers 
of  patients,  afilicted  with  diseases  of  the  bowels, 
nervous  affections,  sciatic  neuralgia,  and  with  rheum- 
atism or  gout,  who  come  here  in  hope  of  finding 
relief. 

Bagneres-de-Bigorre,  Bourbonne-les-Bains,  Neres 
and  Vichy,  are  Ukewise  thermal  saline  springs.  The 
celebrated  waters  of  Vichy  are  the  most  popular  not 
only  in  France,  but  in  the  whole  world.  Nor  is  this 
merely  the  result  of  fashion ;  for  never  was  reputa- 
tion based  on  stronger  claims.  They  unite  rare  and 
valuable  qualities,  mainly  ascribed  to  the  bi-carbon- 
ate  of  soda  which  is  found  in  all  eight  springs. 
What  multitudes  of  sufferers  have  drank  with  suc- 
cess of  the  spring  of  the  Grande  Grille, 

Madame  de  Sevigne  wrote  of  Vichy,  to  her  daugh- 
ter :  "  The  scenery  alone  would  cure  me,"  admiring 
so  warmly  what  is  in  truth  a  very  ordinary  landscape. 
All  the  springs  of  Vichy  are  alkaline ;  they  are  gas- 
eous^  thermal   and   contain  a  large  proportion  of 


244 


WATEll. 


mineral  matter,  consisting  of  bicarbonate  of  soda, 
sulphate  of  soda,  chloride  of  sodium,  carbonate  of 
lime,  magnesia,  silica,  and  peroxide  of  iron.  The 
waters  of  Vichy  have  performed  perfectly  marvellous 
cures  in  cases  of  diseases  of  the  digestive  organs, 
gravel,  gout,  diabetes  and  various   cutaneous   dis 


eases. 


Grande  Grille, 

3dly.  Chalybeate  springs  have  a  styptic  flavor 
strongly  resembling  ink  when  exposed  to  contact  with 
the  air ;  they  leave  a  flaky  deposit  of  hydrated  per- 
oxide of  iron.  Almost  all  contain  small  quantities  of 
arsenic,  copper,  lead,  tin,  antimony,  all  in  themselves 
deadly  poisons,  though  when  taken  in  small  quanti- 
ties, they  seem  to  be  beneficial  in  their  effects.    Wheo 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  246 

it  was  first  discovered  that  there  was  arsenic  in  the 
water  of  many  of  the  natural  springs,  the  patients 
became  a  little  uneasy,  but  their  fears  are  ground- 
less, for  the  quantity  of  arsenic  is  extremely  small 
and  its  combination  with  iron  or  lime  sensibly  di- 
minishes its  dangerous  properties.  What  settles, 
finally,  beyond  a  doubt,  the  harmlessness  of  this 
poison  in  such  minute  doses,  is  the  continued  and 
beneficial  use  of  waters  like  those  of  Dussang  and 
Vichy,  which  contain  arsenic.  It  is  very  remarka- 
ble, moreover,  that  precisely  those  springs  which 
have  been  famous  for  many  centuries  are  those  which 
contain  arsenic.  Nature,  by  her  admirable  process 
of  metamorphosis,  is  thus  able  to  transform'  poisons 
into  remedies,  a  curse  into  a  blessing. 

The  waters  of  Porla  in  Sweden,  of  Spa  in  Belgi- 
um, of  Crausac  and  Foyes  in  France,  contain  a  con- 
siderable proportion  of  oxide  of  iron,  combined  with 
acids,  crenic,  carbonic  and  sulphuric.  All  chalyb- 
eate waters  possess  much  the  same  virtues.  Their 
action  is  essentially  strengthening ;  they  assist  di- 
gestion, purify  the  blood,  and  produce  a  real  and 
beneficial  change  in  the  system. 

4th.  Sulphur  waters  contain  soluble  sulphurets, 
and  principally  sulphates  of  soda,  as  Glauber's  salts, 
(Bagneres-de-Luchon  Bareges),  sometimes  sulphates 
of  magnesia,  as  Epsom  salts,  and  others  sulphates 
of  iron.  They  are  always  warm  and  easily  lose 
their  peculiar  properties  in  contact  with  the  air. 

Near  the  Salt  Lake,  in  Utah,  there  exists  a  re- 
markable sulphur  spring,  so  warm  that  it  is  alwaj^s 
boiling,  and  throws  into  the  air  clouds  of  smoke. 


^246  WATER. 

The  most  remarkable  of  so-called  sulphur- springs 
was  no  doubt  discovered  by  A.  von  Humboldt,  when 
he  ascended,  for  the  firsfc  time,  the  Purace,  a  vol- 
cano near  Poxagen,  in  South  America.  He  found 
there,  on  a  table-land,  8,000  feet  above  the  level  of 
the  sea,  a  considerable  stream,  forming  three  cas- 
cades, the  water  of  which  was  strongly  impregnated 
with  sulphuric  acid.  The  natives  called  it,  hence,  the 
Vinegar  River  ;  and  the  great  explorer  found  that 
even  at  a  distance  of  20  miles,  after  mingling  its 
waters  with  those  of  the  Rio  Cauca,  it  is  still  fatal 
to  life,  and  drives  every  fish  from  that  river. 

The  renown  of  Bagneres  is  not  of  recent  date,  for 
it  has  been  a  favorite  summer  retreat  from  the  age 
of  the  Caesars  of  old  to  the  brief  hour  of  the  Caesars 
of  to-day  ;  and  there  are  still  to  be  seen  native  tab- 
lets of  the  Roman  era,  dedicated  to  the  nymphs 
presiding  over  streams,  and  manifesting  gratitude 
for  health  restored.  The  famous  springs  of  Bareges 
rise  in  the  Pyrenees,  at  a  height  of  4,000  feet  above 
the  sea  ;  and  winter  avalanches  not  unfrequently  fall 
upon  the  site  of  the  wooden  barracks  that  are 
erected,  every  summer,  down  the  one  long  street 
that  forms  the  village.  Its  modern  fame  dates  from 
the  visit  of  Madame  de  Maintenon,  with  the  young 
prince  of  Maine,  who  was  club-footed,  and  sought 
health  here  in  1675.  The  waters  are  a  sovereign 
remedy  against  old  wounds,  and  would  have  been 
called,  in  the  days  of  Rabelais,  the  "  true  Arquebus- 
ade  Water." 

Among  the  most  renowned  salt-springs  of  France 
is  that  of  Bourbon  TArcharabault,  to  which  Madame 


THE   USES   OF  WAtEK.  24'if 

lie  Montespau  retreated,  to  end  her  life  in  repent- 
ance and  devotion.  Here  it  was  that,  on  the  night 
of  her  death,  a  cavalier  dismounted  at  her  door, 
and,  hastily  entering  her  chamber,  withdrew  the 
clothes  which  covered  her  bosom,  and  tore  away  a 
key  that  was  suspended  at  her  neck.  Then,  taking 
a  casket  from  a  drawer,  without  having  uttered  a 
word,  he  remounted  his  horse  and  returned  to  Paris. 
This  was  her  son,  the  duke  of  Antin  ;  but  what 
mystery  the  casket  concealed  has  never  been  re- 
vealed. 


AMERICAN  MINERAL  SPRINGS. 

The  same  beneficent  Providence  which  has  en- 
dowed our  country  with  every  gift  that  nature  be- 
stows upon  man,  has  made  ample  provision,  also,  of 
health-giving  waters.  There  is  no  lack  of  springs 
of  every  kind,  and  what  makes  the  gifts  more  pre- 
cious still,  is  the  happy  manner  in  which  these  heal- 
ing waters  are  scattered  broadcast  over  the  great 
Union.  From  the  northernmost  regions  of  Canada 
to  the  shores  of  the  Mexican  Gulf,  and  from  the 
eastern  slope  of  the  Appalachian  range  to  the  moun- 
tains that  face  the  Pacific,  everywhere,  springs 
and  groups,  and  clusters  of  springs  abound  in  mar- 
vellous munificence,  so  that  the  United  States  can 
boast  of  at  least  one  hundred  and  thirty  springs  and 
groups  of  springs  within  its  vast  boundary  lines. 
Carbonated  and  chalybeate,  saline — or  alum,  as  they 
are  called  in  the  South — and  sulplmreted,  all  are 
as  amply  and  as  efiiciently  represented  here  as  in 


248  WATER. 

Europe ;  and  to  these  must  be  added  a  perfect 
wreath  of  thermal  springs,  from  the  moderate  sul- 
phur springs,  in  Florida,  with  a  temperature  of 
70°,  to  the  marvellous  hot  springs  in  Pyramid 
Lake,  Utah,  at  206°.  Even  the  rarest  combinations 
are  not  wanting ;  even  the  familiar  Saratoga  Springs, 
for  instance,  presenting  the  remarkable  feature  of 
carbonic  acid  abounding  in  saline  waters. 

Here,  as  in  Europe,  the  majority  of  mineral 
springs  owe  their  first  renown  to  accident ;  now  the 
beasts  of  the  forest  were  seen  to  make  beaten  tracks 
from  all  directions  towards  certain  salt-licks,  as  they 
were  called,  and  soon  waters  were  discovered,  im- 
pregnated with  a  variety  of  salts  ;  and  now,  Indian 
experience,  first  sneered  at  by  early  settlers,  would 
in  the  end  be  found  valuable,  and  marvellous  vir- 
tues were  ascribed  to  the  springs  they  had  long 
frequented.  In  still  other  cases,  the  early  settlers 
themselves  had  their  attention  early  drawn  to  pecu- 
liar properties  in  neighboring  springs,  and  from 
the  country-people  the  reputation  of  the  latter  passed 
to  sufferers  abroad,  after  careful  and  scientific  in- 
vestigation. 

Among  the  more  renowned  mineral  springs  of 
the  Union,  those  of  Saratoga  are,  beyond  compari- 
son, the  most  famous.  The  springs  of  New  York 
lie  on  or  near  a  junction  of  hmestone,  with  a  talcy 
slate,  close  to  faults  in  the  strata,  wherever  the  rocks 
are  much  deranged  in  position  ;  they  a)'e  arranged 
in  an  irregular  line,  from  Vermont  to  Rockland 
County,  and  a  number  of  intermediate  springs  con- 
nect them,  on  the  same  great  axis  of  disturbance, 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  249 

with  the  popular  springs  of  Virginia,  often  called 
the  Saratoga  of  the  South.  In  the  immediate  neigh- 
borhood of  Saratoga,  however,  a  long  range  of 
springs,  in  the  shape  of  a  crescent,  extends  from 
Ballston  Lake  to  the  Quaker  Springs,  at  Stillwater, 
in  a  southeasterly  direction.  All  these  springs, 
varying  only  in  the  proportions  of  substances  they 
hold  in  solution,  possess  the  same  properties,  and 
are  evidently  prepared  in  one  and  the  same  great 
laboratory.  They  are  eminently  gaseous  at  the 
same  time,  and  present  some  curious  features  con- 
nected with  this  peculiarity ;  thus  the  Park  Spring, 
at  Ballston,  sends  up  minute  bubbles,  without  inter- 
mission, but  at  an  interval  of  about  a  minute  the 
whole  is  agitated  by  the  evolution  of  a  large  bulk  of 
gas  at  once.  At  greater  intervals,  of  many  years, 
powerful,  almost  volcanic,  discharges  of  this  nearly 
pure  carbonic  acid  take  place,  producing  sudden 
and  violent  convulsions.  The  Saratoga  springs  rise 
mostly  from  a  low,  marshy  valley,  and  come  directly 
from  a  bed  of  blue,  marly  clay,  that  underlies  the 
valley  and  the  sand  plains  of  the  vicinity ;  the 
Ballston  springs,  on  the  contrary,  rise  from  a  bed 
of  quicksand,  underneath  a  layer  of  clay,  tilled  with 
pebbles,  boulders  and  gravel,  and  hence  the  sand 
which  they  carry  up  continually  obstructs  the  tubes. 
The  springs  are  then  lost,  or  springs  of  fresh  water 
break  into  the  wells  and  dilute  the  mineral  qualities 
of  the  water. 

Saratoga  contains  not  less  than  ten  principal 
springs,  besides  a  number  of  smaller  ones  ;  of  the 
former,  Congress  Spring  has  foi-  some  time  had  tho 


250  WATER. 

preference  with  visitors,  altbougli  it  may  be  added 
that  fashion  directs  not  only  the  mode  of  hving  at  this 
extravagantly  fashionable  place,  but  even  the  choice 
of  the  waters.  The  Pavilion,  the  Union  and  the  Iodine 
springs  have  each  had  their  brief  reign  of  popularity  ; 
the  High  Rock  Spring  was  the  first  discovered,  the 
Indians  directing  the  attention  of  the  colonists  to 
its  remarkable  virtues  in  curing  rheumatism.  Here 
also  game  frequenting  the  spot  as  a  salt-lick,  had 
first  of  all  attracted  the  Indians  to  the  place,  who 
then,  using  the  water,  discovered  its  healing 
powers.  The  first  white  visitor  was  the  famous  Sir 
William  Johnson,  who  came  herein  1767  to  be  cured 
of  gout,  and  never  afterwards  ceased  to  praise  the 
blessed  waters.  The  popular  interest  in  this  spring 
was  much  heightened  by  its  singular  appearance  : 
it  is  surrounded  by  a  conical  rock  of  calcareous 
tufa,  formed  by  deposits  from  the  water  itself ;  the 
diameter  being  at  the  base  eight  or  nine  feet,  and 
at  the  summit  five  or  six.  It  must  not  be  forgotten, 
finally,  that  besides  the  admirable  qualities  of  Sara- 
toga water  in  which  an  extensive  trade  is  carried  on 
throughout  the  Union — the  dry  and  bracing  charac- 
ter of  the  air,  and  the  balsamic,  or  rather  turpentine 
qualities  with  which  it  is  impregnated  by  the  exten- 
sive pine  forests  around  the  beautiful  village,  con- 
tribute much  to  the  astonishing  cures,  reported  as 
proofs  of  its  efficacy  in  countless  diseases. 

Sulphurous  springs  are  even  more  numerous  in 
the  State  of  New  York,  the  official  geological  sur- 
vey proving  that  there  is  scarcely  a  single  county 
in  which  springs  of   tliis  class,  impregnated   with 


THE   USES   OP   WATER.  251 

sul|)lHiieted  hydrogen,  are  not  found.  Their  watet 
is  generally  dark,  though  limpid  ;  in  the  strata  of  the 
Niagara  group  it  looks  almost  black,  while  in  those 
of  the  higher  strata  it  leaves  in  addition  a  black  and 
red  deposit  and  a  whitish  stain  upon  the  bottom. 
Among  them  the  springs  of  Sharon  and  Avon  take 
the  precedence.  The  former  rise  near  a  little  vil- 
lage called  Leesville,  in  the  township  of  Sharon, 
exactly  at  the  junction  of  the  water-lime  and  Onon- 
daga salt  groups,  from  a  heap  of  pyritous  slate. 
The  White  Sulphur  is  so  richly  impregnated  that 
it  leaves  a  deposit  of  sulphur  on  all  substances  over 
which  it  flows,  even  when  mixed  with  common 
water,  and  for  a  distance  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile  ! 
Then  it  falls  perpendicularly  over  a  ledge  of  rocks 
sixty  feet  high,  and  is  already  large  enough  to  turn 
a  grist  mill.  Sulphate  of  lime,  in  small  but  perfect 
crystals,  is  found  near  the  spring  in  great  abund- 
ance. A  magnesia  spring  is  not  far  from  the  sul- 
phur spring. 

The  Avon  Springs  rise  in  one  of  the  most  beauti- 
ful parts  of  the  justly  famous  valley  of  the  Genesee 
Kiver  ;  they  lie  between  the  village  of  Avon,  which 
is  handsomely  built  upon  a  high  table-land  with  a 
magnificent  view  over  broad,  rich  lands,  and  the 
river  in  the  valley  below.  They  were  well  known  to 
the  Indians,  who  had  from  time  immemorial  re- 
sorted to  them  for  the  cure  of  diseases  of  the  skin, 
and  even  in  our  day  a  few  sad  survivors  of  that  ill- 
fated  race  may  occasionally  be  seen  at  their  old 
haunts.  As  early  as  1792  white  settlers  came  there 
to  seek  a  cure  for  similar  affections  and  of  rheuma- 


252  WATER. 

tism,  cind  soon  tlie  renown  of  the  three  springs  spread 
far  and  near.  The  Third  Spring,  originally  a  large 
pool  of  fifty  feet  diameter,  was  first  used  for  bathing, 
and  has  always  been  more  popular  than  the  Upper 
and  the  Loioer,  as  the  others  are  called.  Iodine 
springs  abound  in  the  immediate  neighborhood, 
with  a  strong  salt  taste,  owing  to  the  large  amount 
of  chloride  of  sodium  they  hold  in  solution.  The 
water  of  both  the  Sharon  and  Avon  springs  have 
remarkable  stimulating  powers  ;  when  they  do  not 
immediately  act  as  purgatives,  they  quicken  the 
pulse,  cause  a  sense  of  internal  heat,  and  produce 
sleeplessness  and  a  state  of  excitement  similar  to 
that  which  follows  the  use  of  strong  coffee,  and 
may  be  increased  to  the  extent  of  causing  slight 
intoxication.  The  popularity  of  these  springs,  used 
for  bathing  as  well^as  for  drinking,  is  growing  with 
every  year,  and  ranks  them  at  least  as  higli  as  the 
far-famed  sulphur  springs  of  the  Pyrenees. 

Besides  these  principal  springs  the  State  of  New 
York  boasts  of  other  sulphur  springs  at  Clifton, 
which  are  so  strongly  impregnated  that  their  odor  is 
perceptible  at  the  distance  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile  ;  at 
Chittenango,  where  the  water  fresh  from  the 
spring  has  an  opaline  or  milky  appearance  ;  and  at 
Manlius  in  the  shape  of  a  sulphur  pool,  known  as 
Lake  Sodom.  The  lake  is  about  a  mile  and  a  half 
in  length  and  half  a  mile  wide,  with  a  depth  vary- 
ing from  25  to  165  feet ;  water  drawn  from  this 
depth  is  found  to  be  highly  charged  with  sulphuret- 
ed  hydrogen  and  of  deep  green  color,  probably  due 
to  partial  decomposition  of  the  hydrogen. 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  253 

Nor  is  New  York  wantifig  Id  springs  which  hold 
an  excess  of  sulphuric  acid,  perceptible  to  the  taste 
as  well  as  to  reagents,  and  often  called  alum  springs, 
on  account  of  the  sulphates  of  alumina  and  iron 
which  they  contain,  while  the  latter  ingredieut 
would  entitle  them  to  a  place  among  the  chalybeate 
springs.  The  most  acid  of  these  springs  is  proba- 
bly one  of  a  group  rising  in  the  town  of  Byron, 
Genesee  County,  which  has  an  intensely  sour  taste, 
contains  nearly  pure  though  dilute  sulphuric  acid, 
and  issues  from  the  ground  sufficiently  strong  to 
turn  a  mill  near  the  fountain-head.  Another  such 
acid  spring  of  some  renown,  is  at  Clifton  Springs, 
twelve  miles  from  Geneva.  Lebanon  Spring,  with 
its  temperature  at  73°,  and  its  slight  saline  impreg- 
nation, makes  a  delightful  bath  and  breaks  forth  in 
such  abundance  that  there  is  not  only  enough  for 
all  the  visitors,  but  also  for  two  or  three  mills, 
which  are  kept  running  even  in  midwinter.  The 
water  is,  however,  quite  as  serviceable  when  taken 
as  a  drink,  and  has  effected  remarkable  cures  in 
dyspepsia  and  gout.  Among  the  curiosities  of 
mineral  springs  in  the  State  of  New  York,  we  must 
not  forget  the  numerous  and  valuable  wells  which 
give  out  carbonated  hydrogen  gas,  which  in  many 
places,  e.  g.,  in  the  town  of  Fredonia,  is  turned  to 
good  account,  and  lights  up  the  streets  and  houses. 

No  other  state  is  so  rich  in  mineral  springs  as 
Virginia,  which,  before  the  discoveries  made  in  Cal- 
ifornia and  New  Mexico,  could  justly  boast  of  the 
greatest  variety  and  largest  number  of  thermal 
springs.      Dr.  W.  B.  Rogers,  long  the  State  geolo- 


254  WATER. 

gist  of  the  Old  Dominion,  enumerated  not  less 
than  fifty-six  such  springs,  copious  and  constant,  all 
of  which  are  truly,  though  slightly,  thermal,  and 
owe  their  remarkable  uniformity  of  temperature  to 
what  he  called  "  a  deeply  subterranean  source." 

Among  all  Virginia  springs,  the  so-called  White 
Sulphur  are  the  most  renowned,  assembling  every 
year  large  numbers  of  visitors  from  all  parts  of  the 
country,  though  the  majority  are  naturally  from 
Southern  States,  and  presenting  southern  society  in 
its  gayest  and  most  attractive  aspect.  The  water  is 
the  strongest,  most  active,  and  most  stimulating  of  a 
whol6  group  of  similar  sulphur  springs,  known  as  the 
Red,  the  Yellow,  and  the  White  Sulphur.  The  main 
spring  rises  at  an  elevation  of  2,000  feet  above  the 
sea,  bursting  with  unusual  boldness  from  rock-lined 
apertures,  and  yielding,  independent  of  dry  or  wet 
weather,  an  average  of  eighteen  gallons  a  minute. 
The  water  is  perfectly  clear  and  transparent,  depos- 
iting copiously  a  white,  and  sometimes  a  red  and 
black  precipitate,  composed  in  part  of  saline  ingre- 
dients. It  does  not,  like  other  waters,  lose  its 
transparency  by  parting  with  its  gas,  nor  does  it  de- 
posit its  salt  when  quiescent,  and  still  the  gas  is 
speedily  fatal  to  animals  when  immersed  for  a  sliort 
time  even;  small  fish  survive  but  a  few  moments, 
larger  ones  die  after  a  few  minutes.  Its  viitues  in 
all  chronic  affections  of  the  organic  system  cannot 
be  over-rated ;  at  the  same  time  it  must  not  be  for- 
gotten that  these  very  virtues  and  its  great  strength 
make  it,  when  misapplied,  the  most  mischievous  of 


THE  USES  OF  WATER.  255 

similar  waters,  and  its  use  requires,  therefore,  the 
greatest  caution. 

This  delightful  place,  with  its  cool,  bracing  air, 
its  magnificent  scenery  and  matchless  variety  ot 
field  and  forest,  forms  the  centre  of  numerous 
groups  of  other  springs,  stretching  along  a  line  pa- 
rallel with  the  range  of  the  Appalachian  Moun- 
tains. Nearly  every  variety  of  mineral  springs 
known  to  medical  men  may  be  found  here,  within  a 
comparatively  small  compass,  and  everywhere  the 
beauty  of  scenery,  the  salubrity  of  the  air,  and  tlie 
abundance  of  homely  but  wholesome  fare,  aids  the 
benevolent  purposes  of  Nature,  in  providing  a 
remedy  for  almost  every  ill  that  human  Mesh  is  heir 
to.  Among  these,  the  Red  Sulphur,  long  the 
favorite  resort  of  South  Carolinians,  is  much  re- 
nowned for  its  power  to  cure  pulmonary  consump- 
tion. Instances  are  recorded  of  its  efi'ects  on  the 
action  of  the  heart,  reducing  the  beats  from  100 
and  even  120  and  130  to  70  and  65  a  minute, 
while  drinking  it  allays  thirst  and  causes  sleep. 
Men  of  science  attribute  much  of  the  good  effects 
of  the  water  to  an  organic  matter,  called  by  Dr. 
Hayes  a  "  sulphur  compound." 

The  warm  springs,  on  the  other  hand,  atibrd  prob- 
ably the  most  dehghtful  natural  warm  bath  to  be 
found  in  any  part  of  the  world.  The  large  basin, 
thirty  feet  in  diameter  and  five  deep,  fed  by  a  source 
which  gives  out  a  thousand  gallons  a  minute,  fur- 
nishes the  most  luxurious  enjoyment  that  can  be 
imagined.  The  water  largely  evolves  nitrogen,  and 
carbonic  acid  in  smaller  quantities  :  its  full  value  is 


25G  WATER. 

hardly  yet  appreciated,  for  competent  judges  inforDi 
us  that  its  medicinal  virtues  are  in  no  way  inferior 
to  those  of  the  far  famed  Wildbad  in  Germany. 
The  same  may  be  applied  to  the  hot  springs,  which 
have  a  temperature  rising  to  106°  and  have  effected 
cures  of  the  most  violent  chronic  rheumatism  and 
kindred  diseases,  unequalled  by  the  efficacy  of  any 
other  waters  of  the  kind  in  Europe.  Their  wonder- 
ful restorative  powers  are  far  superior  to  those  of 
the  springs  at  Bath,  in  England.  A  few  miles  dis- 
tant are  the  Healing  Springs,  discovered  only  within 
the  last  few  years,  but  already  well  known  by  the 
apparent  wonders  they  have  performed  in  cases  of 
rheumatiyin  and  cutaneous  diseases. 

Besides  the  springs  which  we  have  mentioned, 
almost  every  part  of  the  State  of  Virginia  has  some 
springs  endowed  with  medicinal  virtues.  In  Berkley 
County,  the  Bath  spring  resembles  that  which  in 
England,  by  a  strange  blunder,  is  called  the  Bristol 
Hot  Well,  and  produces  striking  cures  in  cases  of 
aggravated  chronic  rheumatism  ;  its  visitors  are 
mainly  from  Baltimore  and  Pennsylvania.  For  dys- 
pepsia and  kindred  diseases  patients  resort  in  large 
numbers  to  the  Capon  Springs.  The  Bath  Alum 
Springs,  again,  containing  in  a  gallon  not  less  than 
55  grains  of  saline  substances  and  of  carbonic  and 
sulphuric  acids,  are  very  active  as  a  strong  tonic 
and  astringent,  and  have  of  late  become  very  popu- 
lar. The  water  of  the  Rockbridge  Alum  Springs  is 
stronger  in  free  sulphuric  acid,  but  contains  less  iron 
than  the  Bath ;  nevertheless  it  has  its  fair  share  of 
patronage.      Among  the  chalybeate  springs  of  Vir- 


THE    USES   OF  WATEK.  257 

ginia,  Eawley's  Springs  hold  the  precedence ;  the 
water  is  a  strong,  simple  chalybeate  of  great  power 
in  cases  where  its  medicinal  properties  are  in  requi- 
sition. Nor  is  the  eastern  part  of  Virginia  without 
its  fair  share  of  mineral  waters,  and  what  the  sweet 
springs  of  the  valley  are  to  the  west,  the  Huguenot 
and  similar  springs  are  to  the  eastern  -portion — the 
former,  a  sulphur  spring,  resembling  the  White 
Sulphur. 

Among  the  saline  springs  of  the  West  those  at 
Harrodsburgh,  in  Kentucky,  are  probably  the  most 
generally  known.  Unlike  most  of  the  mineral 
springs  of  that  State,  which  are  found  in  deep  val- 
leys, they  burst  out  near  the  summit  level  of  the 
country,  at  an  altitude  of  near  a  thousand  feet  above 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  There  is  no  trace  of  malaria, 
therefore,  in  the  neighborhood,  and  as  the  whole 
country  around  has  been  settled  ever  since  1774, 
none  of  the  causes  that  commonly  cause  autumnal 
fevers,  can  be  presumed  to  be  active  any  longer. 
The  water  is  so  strongly  impregnated  that  every 
tumbler  of  it  contains  nearly  16  grains  of  saline 
matter,  over  half  of  which  consists  of  magnesian 
salts,  and  the  patient  who  drinks  four  tumblers  of 
what  is  called  the^Saloon  Spring,  takes  hence  nearly 
a  drachm  of  sulphate  of  magnesia  and  a  grain  of 
bicarbonate  of  iron.  The  Harrodsburg  waters  are 
extensively  exported,  and  may  be  found  everywhere 
in  the  Southwest,  having  made  their  way  even  into 
many  garrisons  of  U.  S.  troops.  Other  epsom 
springs  abound  in  Kentucky,  among  which  the  Roch- 
ester and  the    Olympian    Springs,  the  latter   also 


258  WAi^R. 

known  by  tli6ir  less  poetical  name  of  Mud  Lick,  are 
most  famous.  These  are  at  one  of  the  oldest  and 
most  noted  of  the  watering-places  of  the  West,  and 
derive  their  classic  name  from  a  detached  conical 
summit  in  the  neighborhood,  which  has  received  the 
pretentious  name  of  Olympus.  Like  the  famous 
Cluster  Springs  of  Virginia,  which,  within  a  few 
feet  distance  from  each  other,  represent  nearly  all 
the  leading  varieties  of  mineral  springs,  this  local- 
ity also  has  salt  and  sulphur,  a  white  sulphur  and  a 
chalybeate  spring  in  almost  immediate  juxtaposition. 
A.  feebler  vein,  near  the  principal  well,  is  called  the 
Vitriol  Spring,  and  contains  muriates  and  carbonates 
in  small  quantities.  The  Blue  Lick  and  Lower  Blue 
Licks  lie  in  that  central  fertile  region,  caUed  the 
Great  Blue  Limestone  formation,  rich  in  the  fossil- 
ized remains  of  inhabitants  of  the  deep  primeval 
ocean  under  which  they  were  evidently  deposited. 
The  water  of  these  springs,  on  standing  exposed  to 
the  air,  becomes  of  a  yellowish  green  color,  which 
deepens  on  boiling  it,  and  has  given  it  the  name  of 
Blue  Licks ;  this  color  is  the  result  of  a  remarkable 
chemical  change  which  takes  place  in  the  water  upon 
exposure. 

In  Ohio,  we  learn  from  Dr.  Drake,  one  of  the  first 
settlers  in  Cincinnati,  and  the  author  of  a  well-known 
valuable  work  on  the  Mississippi  Valley,  mineral 
springs  aie  numerous,  but  neither  greatly  diversified 
in  their  properties,  nor  copious  in  the  supplies  they 
atibrd.  The  most  common  are  chalybeate,  and 
among  them   the  Yellow   Springs   furnish  a  very 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  259 

pleasant  tonic,  while  the  Westport  Springs  contain 
sulphate  of  magnesia. 

Pennsylvania,  on  the  other  hand,  can  boast  of  her 
Bedford  Springs,  the  waters  of  which  have  acquired 
deserved  celebrity  in  indigestion  and  similar  affec- 
dons,  while  gout  and  rheumatism  of  certain  kinds 
also  yield  to  their  efficacy.  Their  discovery  was  due 
to  an  accident ;  a  mechanic  of  Bedford,  in  1804, 
happening  to  be  attracted  by  the  beauty  and  singu- 
larity of  the  waters  flowing  from  the  bank  of  the 
streams  in  which  he  was  fishing.  He  had  suffered 
V  many  years  from  rheumatism  and  formidable  ulcers, 
but  after  a  few  weeks'  use  of  the  waters,  both  in- 
ternally and  as  a  bath,  he  was  entirely  cured.  The 
report  of  his  recovery  soon  spread,  and  from  that 
time  an  incessant  stream  of  visitors  has  annually 
visited  the  beautiful  valley  in  which  the  spring  is 
situated.  The  waters,  drank  with  proper  precaution, 
and  accompanied  by  a  judicious  use  of  the  baths, 
have  been  found  salutary  in  a  wide  range  of  chronic 
diseases,  and  their  curative  powers  cannot  very  well 
be  overestimated.  Here,  also,  sulphur,  sweet,  and 
chalybeate  springs  are  found  in  the  immediate  neigh- 
borhood, in  the  latter  of  which,  singularly  enough, 
part  of  a  skeleton  of  a  mammoth  was  found,  when 
cleaning  it  out.  The  accommodations  for  visitors 
are  excellent,  and  the  beauties  of  the  surrounding 
landscape  have  been  skillfully  brought  out  by  large 
plantations  and  judicious  improvements.  The  York 
Springs,  formerly  much  visited,  from  Baltimore 
especially,  are  strongly  chalybeate,  while  Carlisle 
Springs  have    a  mild   sulphurous  water.      Besides 


260  WATER. 

these,  nearly  a  score  of  mineral  springs  attract  overj 
summer  large  numbers  of  visitors,  and  enjoy  great 
local  reputation  ;  those  at  Gettysburg  have  comG 
quite  recently  into  renown,  but,  though  useful  for 
many  purposes,  owe  their  prestige  mainly  to  tlie 
historical  associations  connected  with  the  town  from 
wliich  they  derive  their  name. 

The  chief  watering-place  of  the  neighboring  State 
of  New  Jersey,  is  Schooley's  Mountain  Spring,  a  rill 
issuing  from  a  perpendicular  rock,  forty  or  fifty  feet 
above  the  bed  of  a  brook  which  flows  down  into  the 
channel  beneath.  It  gives  thirty  gallons  an  hour, 
and  does  not  vary  with  season  or  weather.  The 
water  is  a  pure  carbonated  chalybeate,  depositing 
oxide  of  iron  on  troughs,  baths  and  even  drinking 
vessels.  Here,  also,  the  medicinal  properties  of  the 
spring  are  aided  and  enhanced  by  the  pure  air  of 
the  mountain,  which  is  over  1,000  feet  above  the 
sea,  and  the  inducement  to  take  much  active  exer- 
cise held  out  by  the  beauty  of  the  surrounding  land- 
scape. 

It  would  exceed  the  limits  of  our  purpose  to  men- 
tion here  all  the  more  important  mineral  springs  of 
the  Union.  It  must  suffice  to  say  that  Maine  and 
Vermont  have  their  saline  and  chalybeate  springs, 
while  North  Carolina  boasts  mainly  of  her  warm 
and  hot  springs,  in  Buncombe  County,  which  has 
given  its  name  to  a  favorite  style  of  political  ora- 
tory. The  Indian  and  Meriwether  warm  springs  of 
South  Carolina  are  said  to  surpass,  in  medicinal 
virtue,  the  most  famous  chalybeate  springs  of  the 
North,  while  the  hot  springs  of  Ouachita,  in  ArkaD- 


THE   USES  OF   WATER.  261 

8.1S,  are  unsurpassed  in  the  world.  The  water,  as  it 
runs  out  from  the  foot  of  the  Hot  Mountain  in  co- 
pious streams,  all  along  the  slope,  is  hot  enough  to 
scald  the  hand,  and  to  boil  an  egg  hard  in  less  than 
ten  minutes.  A  dense  fog  continually  hangs  over 
these  springs,  and  the  side  of  the  hill  looks,  at  a 
distance,  like  a  number  of  furnaces  in  blast.  The 
mode  of  using  the  waters  is  by  taking  a  steam  bath, 
which,  after  a  few  minutes,  produces  a  profuse  per- 
spiration ;  the  effect  is  said  to  be  at  least  equal,  if 
not  superior,  to  that  produced  by  the  waters  of 
Baden-Baden,  Wiesbaden,  and  Carlsbad,  in  Ger- 
many. The  water  is  so  strongly  impregnated  with 
lime  and  magnesia,  that  leaves,  sticks,  and  similar 
articles  exposed  to  its  action,  are  quickly  petrified, 
that  is,  covered  with  a  thick  layer  of  these  minerals. 

Among  the  two  thousand  mineral  and  thermal 
springs  which  the  patriotic  enthusiasm  of  a  Southern 
writer  claims  for  the  State  of  Florida,  the  sulphur 
spring  near  Tampa  is  perhaps  the  only  one  the  me- 
dicinal virtues  of  which  have  been  fully  authenti- 
cated. It  is  a  white  sulphur,  bubbling  up  from  thf 
crevices  of  hmestone,  and  forming  a  basin  of  eighteer 
feet,  filled  with  beautiful,  limpid  water. 

The  whole  Southwest  is  remarkable,  among  other 
natural  peculiarities,  for  the  number  of  mineral 
springs  it  contains ;  but  their  inaccessibility  has  so 
far  prevented  them  from  claiming  the  rank  that  is  due 
them  among  the  famous  places  of  the  world, —  a 
difficulty  which  will  soon  be  at  least  partially  re- 
moved by  the  great  Southern  Pacific  Railway.  Per- 
haps  the   most   remarkable  among   them    are   the 


262  WATER. 

Beer  Springs,  so  called  by  early  voyageurs,  which 
rise  in  the  bed  of  Bear  Biver,  and  owe  their  curious 
name  to  their  active  effervescence  and  acidulous 
taste.  They  were  discovered  by  General  Fremont, 
in  his  famous  expedition  across  the  Bocky  INIoun- 
tains. 

The  richest  portion  of  our  Great  West,  in  point  oi 
springs,  of  every  kind,  is  the  region  inhabited  by 
the  Mormons.  It  is  well  known  that  the  great  Salt 
Lake  City  itself,  lying  on  the  •  banks  of  the  river 
Jordan,  which  connects  the  Salt  Lake  with  the  Utah 
Lake,  is  provided  with  an  unfaihng  supply  of  fresh, 
pure  water.  By  an  ingenious  mode  of  irrigation, 
mentioned  elsewhere,  this  water  is  made  to  traverse 
each  side  of  every  street,  whence  it  is  led  into  every 
garden-spot,  spreading  life  and  verdure,  health  and 
beauty,  over  what  was  heretofore  a  barren  waste. 
Numerous  warm  and  hot  springs,  some  sulpliurous, 
and  others  chalybeate,  issue  in  all  directions  from 
the  mountain  slope,  which  rises  on  one  side  of  the 
ill-fated  city ;  while  salt  springs  and  salt  pools 
abound  in  every  direction.  The  water  of  the  great 
Salt  Lake  itself  has  proved,  upon  scientific  investi- 
gation, to  be  one  of  the  purest  and  most  concen- 
trated brines  of  the  world,  thus  adding  one  more 
wonder  to  the  many  which  .nature  seems  to  have 
dehghted  in  crowding  together  in  those  regions. 

At  the  Eastern  base  of  the  Sierra  Nevada,  be- 
tween Mud  and  Pyramid  Lakes,  rise  the  most  re- 
markable hot  springs  which  we  possess  on  this  con- 
tinent,— the  so-called  Hot  Springs  of  Pyramid  Lake. 
T],Q  basin   of  the  largest  has  a  circumference  of 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  263 

several  hundred  feet,  and  at  one  extremity,  in  a  cir- 
cular spot,  of  about  fifteen  feet  in  diameter,  the 
boiling  water  bubbles  up  at  irregular  intervals  and 
with  amazing  noise.  The  temperature  is  206°,  but 
when  the  water  is  stirred  with  a  pole  it  rises  to  208°. 
There  are  but  few  hot  springs  on  the  earth's  surface 
with  a  temperature  as  elevated  as  these  boiling 
springs.  The  hottest  in  Europe,  according  to  Arago, 
unconnected  with  recent  volcanic  action,  are  those 
of  Chaudes  Aigues,  in  France,  in  which  the  ther- 
mometer rises  to  176°,  and  the  hottest  produced  by- 
modern  volcanic  action,  according  to  Forbes,  the 
Baths  of  Nero,  at  Baiae,  in  the  Bay  of  Naples, 
which  rise  to  the  same  temperature.  The  Geysers, 
of  Iceland,  a  hot  spring  in  the  island  of  Amsterdam, 
in  the  Indian  Ocean,  and  the  sulphurous  hot  springs 
of  Ussina,  in  Niphon,  a  part  of  Japan,  are  the  only 
springs  which  rise  to  212°,  and  thus  surpass  our 
own.  It  is  however  asserted  upon  good  authority, 
that  the  Boiling  Springs  of  Pyramid  Lake  also 
really  boil  up,  in  the  centre,  rising  to  a  temper- 
ature of  212°,  and  are  thus  equal,  in  this  respect,  to 
the  hottest  springs  known  in  the  world.  Countless 
liot  springs  abound  all  along  the  base  of  the  liocky 
Mountains,  and  recent  explorations  in  the  basin  of 
the  Yellowstone  River  have  brought  to  light  new 
wonders  in  the  way  of  spouting  hot  sulphur  springs, 
in  vast  numbers. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  this  continent,  favored 
beyond  any  part  of  the  world  in  richness  of  soil, 
abundance  of  precious  metals,  and  exhaustless 
stores  of  coal  and  valuable  minerals,  is  by  no  means 


264  WATER. 

deficient  in  ample  means  to  restore  health  and 
return  of  strength  to  the  feeble  and  the  infirm. 
This  is  especially  apparent  when  we  bear  in  mind 
that  only  a  very  small  portion  of  these  health-giving 
waters  is  as  yet  known  to  the  world  ;  countless 
mineral  springs  have  never  yet  been  analyzed ; 
others  are,  as  yet,  more  or  less  inaccessible  in  remote 
mountain  fastnesses,  and  new  discoveries  bring, 
every  year,  new  treasures  to  light.* 


TREATMENT. 

"  When  you  arrive  at  the  waters,"  says  Alibert, 
"  act  as  you  would  do  if  you  were  entering  the  tem- 
ple of  Esculapius,  and  leave  behind  you  at  the  door 
all  the  passions,  which  have  been  tormenting  your 
mind  and  agitating  your  soul.  Once  there,  abstain 
from  imprudence,  and  do  not  exceed  the  prescribed 
doses  as  so  many  invaUds  have  done  at  all  times,  for 
Pliny  already  complained  of  the  evil.  'Many  sick 
people,'  he  says,  '  take  a  pride  in  having  remained 
for  hours  together  in  very  hot  baths,  or  in  drinking 
unmeasured  quantities  of  mineral  waters,  which  are 
both  equally  dangerous.'  Lead  a  quiet,  calm,  tran- 
quil life,  bathe  and  drink  with  moderation,  and  the 
water  will  gradually  exercise  its  beneficial  influence 
upon  you.  Your  sufferings  will  insensibly  pass 
away  in  the  precious  hquid,  and  your  forces  will  be- 
come invigorated." 

Formerly,  invalids  sent  by  their  medical  advisers 
to  the  waters,  were  made  to  undergo  a  severe  pre- 

»  Full  analyses  of  American  mineral  waters  will  be  found  in  the  Appcndl.!. 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  265 

liminaiy  treatment.  The  illustrious  Boileau  gives  us 
a.  proof  in  a  letter  written  to  Kacine  on  the  21st  of 
July,  1G87.  "  I  have  been  purged  and  bled,"  writes 
the  author  of  L'Art  Poetique,  "  and  nothing  more 
remains  for  me  to  undergo  of  all  the  formalities  con- 
sidered necessary  before  taking  the  waters.  The 
medicines  which  I  have  taken  to-day,  have,  as  they 
tell  me,  done  me  all  the  good  in  the  world  ;  for  they 
have  caused  me  to  fall  down  four  or.  five  times  from 
weakness,  and  have  thrown  me  into  a  state  in  which 
I  can  hardly  stand  upright.  To-morrow  I  am  to 
begin  the  great  work ;  I  mean  to  say  that  to-morrow 
I  am  to  begin  taking  the  waters."  Poor  Boileau ! 
We  can  understand  when  we  read  further  how  well 
he  foresaw  what  that  great  work  would  be!  In 
other  letters,  he  informs  us  that  he  takes,  every 
morning,  a  dozen  glasses  of  water,  which  have  caused 
him,  so  to  speak,  to  lose  every  part  of  his  body,  save 
the  malady  for  which  he  took  them." 

Happily  our  physicians  no  longer  resemble  the 
contemporaries  of  Boileau,  or  those  which  Moliere 
so  humorously  describes.  The  cures  due  to  mineral 
waters  are  nowadays  more  frequent  and  complete. 
Let  us,  therefore,  be  grateful  to  Nature  for  her  admi- 
rable medicaments  which  are  able  to  procure  us  that 
greatest  of  all  blessings — health.  "  A  most  preciou« 
possession,"  says  Montaigne,  "  and  the  only  one 
which  deserves  that  we  should  lavish  upon  it,  not 
only  our  time,  wealth  and  labor,  but  also  life  itself ; 
since  without  it,  life  is  sure  to  be  painful  and  dis- 
tressing ;  pleasure  and  wisdom,  science  and  virtue, 
all,  without  it,  languish  and  at  length  perish." 


CHAPTEK  V. 

BATHS. 

"  In  all  times  and  among  all  nations,  batlis  have  been  considorod  ae  an  eflQ 
cacions  hiancli  of  hygiene,"— Dr.  Constantin  Jamks. 

The  celebrated  Medea,  who  in  the  time  of  the  Ar- 
gonauts astonished  all  Greece  by  the  miracles  which 
the  art  of  magic  enabled  her  to  accomplish,  owed  a 
part  of  her  success  to  the  power  she  possessed  of 
rejuvenating  the  old  and  infirm.  Pilephates  and 
other  ancient  authors  state  that  she  obtained  this 
marvellous  result  by  the  use  of  baths  of  mineral 
waters  with  which  she  was  familiar. 

From  the  days  of  Homer,  who  represented  his 
heroes  as  bathing  in  vast  piscines,  to  those  of  the 
contemporaries  of  the  fall  of  the  Roman  Empire, 
when  all  the  appliances  of  unbridled  luxury  were 
found  in  the  public  baths,  the  use  of  baths  has  al- 
ways played  an  important  part  among  the  customs 
of  antiquity.  The  reader  will  doubtless  remember 
the  pools  of  the  Spartans  and  the  baths  of  Athens, 
of  which  Lucian  has  given  us  so  compk^te  a  descrip- 
tion.    Much  also  has  been  written  concerning  the 


THE   USES   OF  WATEll. 


267 


baths  and  thermce  of  the  Romans  to  which  Latin 
writers  continually  allude,  which  are  familiar  to  us' 
by  well  preserved  remains  of  many  buildings  still 
existing  m  Pompeii.  Seneca  and  Lucian  still  awaken 
our  astonishment  by  their  descriptions  of  the  refine- 
ments of  luxury,  which  characterized  these  public 
establishments.  None  of  the  entrances  were  direct, 
the  baths  being  thus  screened  from  contact  with  the 


Plan  of  the  Baths  at  Pompeii. 


A,  Atrium. 
B  B,  Shops. 

F,  Spoliatorium. 
Or,  Unctuarium. 
H,  Frigidarium. 
I,  Tepidarium. 
J,  Caldarixim. 


K,  Hypocaustum. 

M,  Court. 

O,  Door  of  entrance  to  the  woman's 

bath. 
Q,  Spoliatorium  and  Frigidarium. 
It,  Tepidarium. 
S,  Caldarium, 


air  and  observation  from  without.     Two  doors  con- 
ducted you  to  the  atrhim,  surrounded  with  long  por- 


2G8  .      WATER. 

ticoes  of  graceful  columns,  under  wliicli  the  numer- 
ous bathers  could  comfortabl}'  wait  their  turn  for 
entering  the  bath.^  From  the  atrium  jou  went  into 
a  hall  called  the  spoliatorium  or  apodyterium,  where 
slaves  (msparii)  disrobed  the  bathers,  and  kept 
watch  over  their  clothes  and  vahiables.  An  adjoin- 
ing closet,  the  unctuarium,  was  devoted  to  perfum- 
ing the  bather's  body  by  means  of  oils  and  aromatic 
essences. 

We  should  never  finish  our  description  if  we  were 
to  enumerate  all  the  arrangements  which  an  immod- 
erate love  of  luxury  and  comfort  had  suggested  ;  if 
we  were  to  mention  every  detail  of  the  frigidarium, 
or  hall  of  cold  baths — the  haptisterinmy  a  pool  of 
white  marble  surrounded  with  steps,  on  which  the 
bathers  sat — the  tepidarinm,  a  kind  of  vapor  bath, 
kept  at  a  gentle  temperature — the  alipili,  who  ex- 
tracted all  the  superfluous  hair — the  iradatores,  or 
shampooers,  the  heat-conducting  pipes  arranged 
beneath  the  pavements — the  labrum,  a  kind  of  mar- 
ble fountain,  with  its  bronze  jets,  from  which  water 
flowed  to  wash  the  hands  and  face  of  the  bather, 
who  had  been  perspiring  in  the  vapor-bath. 

"  A  complete^  bath,"  says  Galien,  "  is  composed  of 
four  parts,  each  different  in  its  effect.  When  you 
enter  the  thermge,  you  are  subjected  to  the  influence 
of  hot  air  ;  you  are  then  wetted  with  warm  water  ; 
after  that  you  plunge  into  cold  water,  and  last  of 
all  you  are  dried  and  rubbed."     The  order  which 


*  Vitruvius.     According  to  this  author  porticoes  constituted  an 
essential  part  of  all  baths. 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  StJO 

Galieri  indicates  was,  however,  coiislaiitly  changed 
in  consequent  of  the  caprices  of  fashion  and  the 
fancies  of  the  passing  hour,  and  it  is  impossible  at 
present  to  describe  accurately  the  various  processes 
of  rubbing,  shampooing  and  anointing,  multiplied  at 
pleasure  by  the  effeminate  descendants  of  the  Ro- 
mans of  the  republic.  Publius  Victor,  in  the  fourth 
century,  counted  in  Rome  no  less  than  nine  hundred 
thermae  establishments,  and  the  number  of  baths 
was  still  on  the  increase,  when  the  advancing  pro- 
gress of  Christianity  came  to  stop  a  practice  which 
had  passed  from  the  domain  of  hygiene  to  that  of 
vuluptuous  self-indulgence.  In  spite,  however,  of 
the  opinion  of  Agathinius,  the  pupil  of  Athengeus, 
who  saw  in  the  use  of  warm-baths  a  thousand  fatal 
dangers,  the  use  of  baths  had  followed  the  develop- 
ment of  Roman  society  and  could  only  perish  with 
it.  Doomed  for  a  time  to  complete  and  general 
disrepute,  the  bath  resumed  its  popularity  once 
more  under  Charlemagne.  Popular  tradition  shows 
us  the  Great  Emperor  of  the  West  battling  with  his 
whole  court  in  the  baths  of  Aix-la-Chapelle.  If  we 
are  to  believe  the  legend,  it  is  to  a  hunting-dog  that 
we  owe  the  use  of  mineral  waters  in  modern  times. 
The  intelligent  animal  having  escaped  from  the 
royal  pack  of  hounds  to  bathe  in  a  distant  spring, 
and  returning  all  dripping  with  a  liquid  smelling 
strongly  of  sulphur,  suggested  the  idea  of  turning  to 
account  the  hitherto  unknown  spring.  But  the  use 
of  baths  is  not  limited  to  ancient  or  modern  Europe. 
The  oriental  nations,  Indians,  and  nearly  all  the 
savages  of  the  earth,  make  frequent  use  of  baths 


270  WATER. 

and  ablutions.  During  tlie  sanguinary  wars  which 
they  maintained  against  the  Christians,  the  ancient 
Moors  were  accustomed  to  plunge  into  every  spring 
they  met  with  in  their  way,  and  are  said  to  derive 
signal  benefits  from  the  practice.'^ 

Averrhoes  recommends  vapor-baths,  and  ex- 
presses his  opinion  strongly  on  the  subject  of  their 
medical  use.  Ahbert  gives  us  a  translation  of  a 
passage  taken  from  the  "  Medical  Observations  "  of 
the  ancient  Emperor  Kang-Hi,  which  leads  to  the 
supposition  that  the  qualities  of  minerah water  must 
have  been  long  understood  in  China.  "  Nothing  is 
truer,"  says  the  royal  author,  "  than  that  thermal 
waters  are  efiicacious  in  the  treatment  of  various 
diseases."  In  1691,  this  Emperor  undertook  a  long 
journey  for  the  purpose  of  visiting  and  spending 
several  months  in  a  district  situated  to  the  north  of 
Pekin,  and  celebrated  for  its  efficient  mineral  baths. 

In  our  own  day  nearly  every  nation  has  its  own 
way  of  taking  a  bath.  In  the  East  the  public  baths 
are  the  places  where  the  old  and  young  assemble 
day  after  day  to  chat,  to  consult  and  to  discuss  pub- 
lic matters.  Built  of  stone,  they  have  marble  floors, 
heated  from  below,  and  pipes  passing  through  the 
walls  to  diffuse  heat  in  all  directions.  The  bather, 
undressed  and  wrapped  in  woolen  blankets,  is 
shown  into  the  bath-room  proper,  where  the  per- 
spiration soon  breaks  out  from  all  pores  ;  he  is  re- 
peatedly washed  with  cold  water  while   thus   per- 


*  See  Uuiversal  Dictionary  of  Mineral  Waters  by  Durand,  Tardel 
nnd  Le  Bret. 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  271 

sjnring,  and  then  rubbed  down  dry,  and  anointed 
with  aromatic  oil.  After  this  he  Ues  down  on  a  ta- 
ble, and  is  thoroughly  kneaded  in  all  his  limbs  by 
the  attendants,  who  continue  to  pour  the  warm  water 
over  him  and  try  the  elasticity  of  his  muscles  and 
sinews  to  the  utmost.  This  apparently  merciless 
treatment  produces  a  sense  of  voluptuous  delight, 
during  which  the  bather  is  carefully  dried,  the  hard 
skin  being  removed  with  brimstone,  once  more 
anointed  with  oil  and  ointments,  and  at  last  led  to  a 
luxurious  couch,  where  he  rests  and  reposes  himself 
with  his  pipe  and  cooling  sherbet. 

The  Russian  prefers  steam,  and  loves  his  bath  so 
dearly  that  no  village  in  the  whole  empire  is  so  poor 
but  it  has  its  own  establishment.  The  unpretend- 
ing building  consists  generally  of  a  large  room  fur- 
nished with  broad  benches  placed  agaiiist  the  walls, 
on  which  the  peasant  lies  down  undressed.  Hot 
water  is  then  poured  continually  upon  red  hot 
stones,  till  the  room  is  filled  with  dense,  white  va- 
pors, and  the  pleasure-seeker  breaks  out  in  violent 
perspiration.  During  this  time  ice-cold  water  is  re- 
peatedly thrown  over  him,  he  is  bathed  in  soap  and 
beaten  with  softened  birch-twigs  till  he  has  enough, 
and  crowns  his  enjoyment  by  suddenly  jumping  into 
a  bank  of  snow  or  a  river. 

The  Esquimaux,  the  Finns,  the  Greenlanders,  the 
Norwegians,  the  Samoyeds,  all  make  use  of  vapor- 
baths,  constructed,  it  is  true,  upon  a  most  simple 
and  primitive  plan.  A  hole  dug  in  the  earth  and  a 
few  stones  made  red-hot  at  a  fire,  constitute  the 
bath  and  the  stove  ;  the  bather  creeps  into  this  ori- 


272  WATER. 

fice,  and  the  steam,  caused  by  the  moisture  of  the 
soil  when  warmed  by  the  hot  stones,  suffices  to 
provoke  an  abundant  perspiration.  The  Missionary 
Loskiel  describes  simikir  practices  as  prevaihng 
among  the  North  American  Indians ;  a  custom 
which  is  still  in  force  with  the  majority  of  our 
Western  tribes. 

The  ordinary  bath  is  the  most  useful  form  in 
which  mineral  waters  are  taken.  Non-escaping  cold 
chalybeate  waters  and  a  few  bicarbonates  are  used 
in  preference  as  a  beverage.  Warm  waters,  slightly 
mineral,  are  employed  almost  exclusively  as  baths, 
(Neris,  Bains,  Chaudesaigues,  etc.,)  and  it  is  the 
same  with  highly  mineralized  non-gaseous  waters, 
such  as  Kreusnach  and  Salins. 

Besides  the  topical  action  of  baths,  and  the  ab- 
sorption of  considerable  portions  of  the  water  by 
the  human  body,  mineral  baths  act  medicinally  also 
by  the  actual  effect  of  the  substances  which  they 
contain.  All  the  waters  which  hold  in  solution  a 
perceptible  quantity  of  organic  matter,  produce  upon 
the  skin  a  soft  and  unctuous  sensation  which  refresh- 
es and  renders  it  supple.  Waters  which  are  both 
sodic  and  sulphuric  act  as  stimulants  and  produce 
irritation  and  eruptions  upon  the  surface  of  the  skin. 
The  characteristic  of  thermal  baths  is  their  impart- 
ing to  the  bather  a  feeling  of  strength,  and  at  the 
same  time  of  comfort,  while  fresh  water,  and  still 
more  sea  water  baths  can  only  be  used  by  constitu- 
tions capable  of  resisting  their  depressing  influence. 
But  is  there  not  much  in  the  ordinary  use  of  baths 
with  which  fault  may  justly  be  found  ?     If  the  Bo- 


THE   USES  OF  WATER.  273 

mans  abused  the  bath,  may  it  not  be  said  of  us 
moderns,  that  we  do  not  make  sufficient  use  of  it? 
Where  are  the  magnificent  pubhc  baths  and  pools 
lull  of  bathers  every  liour  of  tlie  day  ?  They  have 
been  replaced  by  a  narrow  cell,  a  miserable  bathing 
tub ;  bran  has  been  substituted  for  perfumes  and 
aromatic  oils,  and  our  baths  have  neither  couch  to 
rest  on,  nor  appliances  for  friction  or  for  shampoo- 
ing. Where  are  those  halls,  so  spacious,  so  well 
warmed  and  ventilated,  where  the  bather  could  dry 
himself  graduaUy  before  encountering  the  external 
air  ?  All  the  baths  of  our  day  expose  us  to  a  sud- 
den and  daugerous  transition  from  the  heat  of  the 
water  to  the  cold  air  without. 

It  would  be  a  grave  mistake,  finally,  to  suppose 
that  the  internal  or  external  use  is  the  only  advan- 
tage man  derives  from  these  mineral  springs.  If 
the  latter  are  of  endless  variety,  bringing  life  or 
death,  heat  or  cold,  fire  or  mire  from  the  unknown 
depths  of  the  earth,  man,  on  the  other  hand,  forces 
them  to  serve  him  in  a  thousand  ways.  Here  he  evap- 
orates saline  waters  to  obtain  salt,  there  to  win  alum, 
glauber  salts,  iodine  or  borax ;  in  some  places,  as  in 
the  Hartz  Mountains  and  the  Apennines,  he  gath- 
ers the  limestone  deposited  by  the  water,  and  uses 
it  under  the  name  of  travertine,  to  build  his  houses 
and  churches ;  at  other  places,  as  in  the  Auvergne, 
he  forces  a  river  to  build  itself  the  bridge  by  which 
it  is  to  be  crossed.  The  "  Sprudel,"  at  Karlsbad  in 
Bohemia,  furnishes  a  variegated  stone  resembling 
costly  marble,  and  a  similar  spring  in  Peru  is  made 
to  run  through  moulds  which  it  fills  with  its  delicate 


274  WATER. 

deposits,  and  when  the  form  is  broken,  a  beautiful 
statue  is  the  result ! 


FRESH  AND  SEA  WATER  BATHS. 
All  medical  authorities  are  agreed  in  recommend- 
ing the  use  of  cold  baths,  and  the  inhabitants  of  large 
cities,  situated  on  great  rivers,  have  always  been 
accustomed  to  bathe  in  the  cool  water  during  the 
heat  of  summer.  In  the  country  when  the  sun  is 
darting  his  burning  rays  upon  the  earth,  the  bather 
finds  a  salutary  repose  in  the  waters  of  the  river ; 
he  can  there  allow  himself  to  be  rocked  by  the  waves, 
or,  following  the  current  as  it  glides  down,  shaded 
by  thick  willows,  he  swims  along  the  health-giving 
river,  his  pores  eagerly  absorbing  the  refreshing 
liquid.  In  towns,  bathing  is  a  diversion  at  once  less 
healthy  and  less  agreeable,  and  the  numerous  bath- 
ing establishments  which  block  up  great  rivers, 
afford  by  no  means  the  same  benefit  or  enjoyment. 
Still,  Paris,  for  instance,  may  boast  of  having  had 
cold  river  baths  long  before  other  towns,  for  it  is 
not  a  thing  of  to-day,  for  the  Parisians  to  make  use  of 
cold  baths;  they  had  them  already  in  1760,  and  before 
that  time  they  took  their  pleasure  in  the  open  river. 
Bassompierre  relates  that  in  1608,  the  heat  was  such 
that  during  a  whole  month  more  than  five  thousand 
human  heads  a  day  were  counted  on  the  Seine 
between  Charenton  and  the  Isle  of  St.  Louis.  In  or- 
dinary summers  the  bathers  went  into  the  watei 
above  the  bridge  of  Tournelle,  and  La  Bruyere 
reproaches  the  great  ladies  of  h  is  day  with  the  pleas- 
ure they  found  in  walking  or  driving  in  that  direc- 


THE   USES   OF  WAlTEll.  275 

tion  precisely  as  similar  sarcasms  have  beeu  aimed 
at  the  fair  visitors  of  the  beach  at  Newport  in  our 
day;  "  Far  otherwise,"  says  Michelet, "  is  the  breath 
of  the  sea ;  of  itself  it  purifies.  A  seaside  hfe  is  a 
struggle,  but  a  vivifying  struggle  to  all  who  can  bear 
it." 

The  first  immersion  in  the  sea  is  almost  invaria- 
bly unpleasant,  but  the  comfort  one  soon  experiences 
causes  the  disagreeable  sensation  to  be  quickly  for- 
gotten. Swimming  is  so  easy  and  the  expenditure 
of  muscular  force  so  inappreciable,  that  the  bather 
is  tempted  to  abandon  himself  for  a  long  time  to 
the  charms  of  such  pleasant  exercise.  Its  duration, 
however,  has  to  be  carefully  regulated;  the  body, 
suddenly  plunged  into  the  cold,  is  apt  to  take  a  chill, 
and  the  circulation,  slackened  or  even  partially  sus- 
pended, does  not  recover  its  equihbrium,  if  the  bath 
lasts  too  long.  Upon  leaving  the  water,  reaction 
takes  place,  the  skin  resumes  its  former  color,  the 
blood  rushes  back  to  the  surface,  and  the  beating  of 
the  heart  becomes  freer.  For  the  rest,  to  use  the 
words  of  Galien,  uttered  more  than  a  thousand  years 
ago :  "  Experience  itself  can  be  our  only  guide  as 
to  how  long  it  is  advisable  to  remain  in  the  water. 
If  when  we  come  out  of  our  bath  the  skin  soon  re- 
turns to  its  former  good  color  after  being  rubbed 
hard,  we  may  feel  safe  in  remaining  long  in  the 
water ;  but  if  it  takes  a  long  time  for  our  skin  to  be- 
come warm  again,  and  to  lose  its  pallor,  we  see  a 
sure  indication  that  our  bath  has  been  too  long. 
Its  duration  must  henceforward  be  shorter." 

Sea  water  is  a  true  mineral  water,  marvellously 


276  WATER. 

rich  in  saline  principles ;  it  is  a  vital  source  from 
whence  the  feeble  may  draw  strength,  and  sufferers 
of  every  kind  may  derive  health.  It  holds  in  its 
bosom  nearly  all  remedies, — nearly  all  medicaments 
which  are  most  valuable.  "  We  ought,"  says  Eussel, 
"  both  to  drink  sea  water  and  to  bathe  in  it.  We 
ought  to  saturate  ourselves  with  it,  in  order  to  repair 
the  injuries  done  to  our  bodies.  The  sea  holds  the 
carbonate  of  lime,  which  can  give  strength  to  our 
weak  and  nerveless  bones ;  it  holds  the  iodine 
which  purifies  our  blood,  the  heat  which  our  frame 
so  much  needs,  and,  above  all,  that  mysterious 
something  which  penetrates  so  wonderfully,  that 
gelatine,  that  mucous,  which  envelops  vegetables 
and  marine  animals,  and  lavishes  upon  them  strength 
and  Hfe." 

"  Whatever  principle,"  says  Michelet,  "  exists  in 
you,  that  grand,  intangible  personality,  the  sea, 
possesses,  in  minute  subdivision.  She  has  in  her 
your  bones,  your  blood,  your  fibre,  your  vital 
warmth, — every  element  in  your  constitution,  which 
has  its  representative  in  one  or  other  of  your  chil- 
dren, exists  also  in  the  ocean.  But  she  possesses 
what  you  have  not, — an  excess,  the  overplus  of 
force.  Her  breath  imparts  a  mysterious  something, 
— active,  energetic,  creative, — which  might  be  called 
'physical  heroism.  With  all  her  violence,  the  great 
mother  is  none  the  less  prodigal,  with  her  fierce  joy, 
her  lively  and  quickening  alacrity,  her  wild  and 
burning  love,  that  beats  in  her  own  mighty  heart." 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  277 

THE  WATER   CUKE. 

There  exists  in  Germany  a  celebrated  school  oi 
medicine,  which  affects  to  cure  all  diseases  by  the 
mere  use  of  water.  Cold  water  for  the  healing  of 
wounds ;  thermal  and  mineral  waters,  ice  and  snow, 
variously  applied, — these,  we  are  told,  are  the  only 
weapons  which  physicians  should  make  use  of  in 
curing  the  ills  to  which  flesh  is  heir.  Water  is  thus 
made  a  veritable  panacea.  It  is,  however,  only  the 
extreme  Dr.  Sangrados  of  this  school,  who  have  as- 
cribed a  German  origin  to  the  water-cure ;  for  this 
important  branch  of  the  healing  art  has,  in  reality, 
nothing  new  about  it  but  the  name. 

Naaman  was  told  by  the  prophet  to  wash  in  the 
waters  of  Jordan  ;  and  Seneca  has  told  us,  in  so 
many  words,  that  cold  water  restores  the  patient 
suffering  from  syncope.  Does  not  Homer  show  us 
Patroclus  washing  the  wound  of  Euripylus,  received 
at  the  siege  of  Troy,  with  cold  water?  Have  we 
forgotten  Hecuba's  cries  for  water  to  wash  the 
wounds  of  Polyxene?  Do  not  these  facts  prove 
that  the  ancients  employed  water  with  excellent 
judgment?  Douche-baths  were  fully  known  to  them, 
and  it  was  at  Rome,  in  the  reign  of  Augustus,  that 
the  hydropathic  system  was  originated,  under  the 
happy  inspiration  of  a  freedman — Antonius  Musa. 
This  physician  prescribed  water  as  a  drink,  in  baths 
and  in  shower  baths,  and  he  found  in  this  simple 
remedy  the  secret  of  a  new  system  of  therapeutics. 
Augustus  had  but  just  been  chosen  Consul  for  the 
eleventh  time,  when  he  fell  ill  with  a  dangerous  sick- 


278  WATER. 

ness.  Seeing  his  end  approaching,  he  assembled 
the  magistrates,  the  senators,  and  the  principal 
knights,  and  then,  having  conferred  with  them  on 
the  affairs  of  the  E-epubHc,  he  placed  the  seal  of  gov- 
ernment in  the  hands  of  Agrippa.  It  was  at  this 
moment  that  Antonius  Musa  undertook  to  cure  him 
by  his  new  method,  and  the  Consul  was  cured  by 
means  of  cold  water,  applied  botli  externally  and 
internally.  Augustus,  full  of  gratitude,  bestowed  on 
Musa  a  large  sum  of  money,  the  gold  ring  of  a 
knight,  and  ordered  his  statue  to  be  placed  be- 
side that  of  Esculapius ;  at  the  same  time  he 
conferred  upon  him,  and  all  who  then  exercised, 
and  hereafter  should  exercise  the  same  profession, 
nobility,  and  an  exemption  from  taxation.  (See  Dio 
Cassius,  quoted  in  Dr.  C.  James'  Guide  to  Mineral 
Waters.)  Musa  was  not  slow  in  acquirmg  an  im- 
mense reputation.  "  Oh,  Musa !"  exclaimed  Virgil, 
"  No  one  may  flatter  himself  that  he  will  ever  sur- 
pass thee  in  science."  And  thus  hydropathy  re- 
placed, for  a  time,  all  other  systems  of  therapeutics. 
Horace  himself  soon  after  resorted  to  this  famous 
physician,  and  the  graceful  poet,  after  having  sung 
the  praises  of  the  Ealernian  wine,  thought  of  no- 
thing else  than  to  look  for  the  best  cold  water ;  he 
set  out  for  Velium,  where  Musa  prescribed  for  him 
a  hydropathic  treatment,  and  after  that  he  took  the 
sulphur  baths  of  Baise. 

But  fortune  was  not  always  prodigal  of  her  favors 
to  the  celebrated  Musa.  Being  called  in  to  attend 
the  young  Marcellus,  whose  life  was  in  danger,  he 
felt  bound  to  apply  his  favorite  system — he  recom- 


THE   USES   OF  WATEK.  279 

mended  cold  water  and  Marcellus  expired.  This 
was  a  terrible  blow  both  to  hydropathy  and  its  advo- 
cates. Cold-water  cures  were  at  once  universally 
abandoned.  A  century  later,  Charmis,  under  Nero, 
recommended  the  system  of  Musa ;  he  met  with  the 
same  success  and  awakened  the  same  enthusiasm  ; 
cold  baths  again  became  the  fashion  and  were  taken 
at  all  hours  of  the  day.  Nero  was  in  the  habit  of 
adding  snow  to  the  water  of  his  baths,  and  the  sys- 
tem really  deserved  its  name  of  hydropathy,  the 
baths  being  often  preceded  by  violent  perspiration. 
"  We  went  to  the  baths,"  says  Petronius,  "  and 
there,  with  bodies  all  in  a  perspiration,  we  plunged 
into  cold  water." 

Charmis,  like  Musa,  prescribed  cold  water  inter- 
nally as  well  as  externally,  and  that  in  large  doses. 
It  was  needful,  according  to  Pliny,  to  drink  before 
you  sat  down  to  the  table,  during  the  repast,  and 
again  before  going  to  sleep ;  it  was  even  necessary 
sometimes  to  be  roused  in  order  to  drink  again, 
(et  si  liheat  somnos  inter rumpere.)  The  temperature 
of  water  could  never  be  too  low.  The  impulse  given 
by  Charmis  continued  long  after  his  death.  Celsus, 
who  survived  him,  and  the  successors  of  Celsus, 
frequently  prescribed  cold  water,  and  we  see  in  their 
writings  the  happy  use  they  made  of  it  in  the  treat- 
ment of  their  patients.  History  does  not  tell  us 
whether  hydropathy  found  a  second  Marcellus.  All 
we  do  know  is  that  little  by  little  warm  baths  su- 
perseded cold  baths,  so  much  so  that  in  our  own 
day  the  latter  had  been  entirely  abandoned,  when 
suddenly  their   use   received  a   new  impulse   from 


280  WATER. 

Priessnitz,  the  German  reformer,  from  whom,  in 
fact,  hydropathy  must  be  dated.     (Dr.  C.  James.) 

He  was  a  simple  peasant  of  Silesia,  a  province  of 
Prussia,  when  in  1816  he  was,  on  his  return  from 
the  fields,  thrown  from  his  horse  ;  the  runaway  ani- 
ma]  injured  his  face  severely  with  his  hoofs,  and 
broke  two  of  his  ribs.  The  little  village  of  Freiwal- 
den,  where  he  lived,  could  not  boast  of  a  physician, 
and  Priessnitz  had  to  cure  himself  as  well  as  he 
could.  He  gradually  forced  his  ribs  back  to  their 
natural  position,  by  pressing  his  chest  continually 
against  the  side  of  a  chair ;  in  place  of  bandages  he 
employed  wet  linen  ;  he  drank  large  quantities  of 
cold  water,  and  was  soon  able  to  resume  his  work. 

This  cure  made  a  great  sensation,  and  Priessnitz 
recommending  the  same  treatment  to  others,  was, 
ere  long,  consulted  in  all  cases  of  sickness — he  in- 
variably applied  his  cold  water  system — and  being 
of  an  observing  turn  of  mind,  he  tried  to  supply  by 
observation  what  he  lacked  of  scientific  knowledge. 
Soon  he  went  from  village  to  village,  healing  all  who 
applied  to  him  for  help,  and  acquiring  a  name  which 
gradually  became  famous.  A  few  years  only  elapsed 
and  the  peasant  Priessnitz  had  founded  a  vast  es- 
tablishment, resorted  to  by  crowds  of  invalids  from 
all  parts  of  the  world,  seeking  from  empiricism  the 
recovery  refused  to  them  by  science. 

Hydropathy  was  very  tardily  received  abroad  ; 
and  a  steady  opposition  to  it  was  maintained  for  a 
long  time,  especially  in  France  ;  nevertheless  httle 
by  little  men  grew  accustomed  to  cold  water — and 
cold  baths,  cold  water  effusions  and  iced  compresses 


THE  USES   OF  WATER.  281 

now  liold  their  place  on  the  list  of  medicaments  em- 
ployed by  our  doctors.  Iii  the  United  States  the 
method — perhaps  owing  to  its  simple  practical  char- 
acter— became  soon  eminently  popular.  A  German, 
Dr.  Wesselhoeft,  established  the  first  large  establish- 
ment of  the  kind  at  Brattleboro,  Vt.,  and  now  similar 
"  Water  Cures,"  as  they  are  briefly  called,  may  be 
found  in  almost  all  of  the  Northern  States. 

The  method  of  Priessnitz  consists  in  the  drinking 
of  cold  water,  moist  wrappings,  rubbing  with  wet 
cloths,  cold  douches,  cold  sit  baths  and  cold  foot 
baths ;  such  were  the  only  prescriptions  of  the  old 
Silesian  peasant.  These  remedies  are,  no  doubt, 
excellent  in  certain  cases,  and  hydropathy  is  with- 
out doubt  one  of  the  important  branches  of  the 
healing  art.  But  the  new  method  has  been  injured 
by  over-zealous  advocates,  who  have  absurdly 
praised  it  at  the  expense  of  all  other  systems. 
What  necessity  is  there  to  despise  all  the  recog- 
nized systems,  or  to  reject  all  commonly  employed 
medicaments  for  the  sake  of  this  one  beverage — 
cold  water  ?  We  ought  to  leave  such  extravagances 
to  the  famous  doctor,  immortalized  by  Le  Sage. 


ARTIFICIAL  MINERAL  WATERS. 

The  idea  of  replacing  the  mineral  waters  of  na- 
ture by  similar  waters  artificially  produced,  is  not 
new  ;  on  the  contrary,  several  of  Galen's  contem- 
poraries already  attempted  to  prepare  beverages 
which  should  rival  the  waters  of  the  most  famous 
springs.     But  in  the  opinion  of  Herodotus  no  bev- 


282  WATER. 

erage  of  this  description  equalled  the  water  froru 
which  it  derived  its  name,  and  numerous  attempts 
have  proved  that  Herodotus  was  not  mistaken. 
Many  kinds  of  purgative  and  sulphur  water  of  in- 
contestable efficacy  have  indeed  been  manufactured, 
but  there  is  no  comparison  between  these  medica- 
ments and  those  which  nature  produces  in  the 
bosom  of  the  globe.  The  Seidlitz  water  of  chemists 
has  nothing  in  common  with  the  German  spring  of 
that  name,  save  the  label ;  and  the  ordinary  Seltzer 
water,  drank  at  meals,  does  not  in  any  way  resemble 
that  which  is  supplied  by  the  celebrated  spring  in 
the  Duchy  of  Nassau.  It  is,  however,  a  very  whole- 
some and  refreshing  beverage,  and  so  universally 
held  in  repute  that  it  may  be  well  to  describe  its 
preparation. 

Seltzer  water  is  simply  common  water  charged 
with  carbonic  acid  by  high  pressure,  and  is  prepared 
on  a  large  scale  by  means  of  the  apparatus  which 
is  represented  on  the  opposite  page.  The  carbonic 
acid  gas,  produced  in  a  metal  cylinder,  under  the 
action  of  sulphuric  acid  poured  upon  carbonate  of 
lime  (chalk,  marble,  etc.,)  passes  through  three 
purifying  vessels  and  then  enters  a  gasometer  ;  a 
pump  drives  it  back  into  the  spherical  receiver, 
furnished  with  a  pressure-gauge,  and  a  leaden  tube 
finally  takes  it  to  a  syphon,  which  it  enters  under  a 
pressure  of  ten  or  twelve  atmospheres. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

PUBLIC     HYGIENE. 

"  Notwitlistandiiig  the  abundance  with  which  water  is  spread  over  the  siic- 
(xce  of  the  earth,  it  is  often  lacking  in  certain  spots  where  it  would  be  of  the 
utmost  utihty,  and  there  is  not  a  single  city  the  salubrity  of  which  might  not 
be  greatly  increased  by  it."— J.  Dupuit. 

DKINKING  WATER. 

Terrible  were  the  punishments  suffered  by  the 
guilty  dwellers  in  Tartarus  ;  but  the  greatest  of  all 
seemed,  even  to  the  ancients,  the  anguish  endured 
by  a  monarch  whom  the  gods  had  once  loved  as 
companion,  and  now  in  their  fury  exposed  to  incred- 
ible torture.  He  had  eaten  their  bread  and  drank 
of  their  nectar — what  wonder  that  earthly  food 
pleased  his  fastidious  palate  no  longer  ?  The  red 
wine  of  Phrygia,  his  own  kingdom,  could  no  longer 
make  merry  his  heart,  and  his  soul  longed  for  the 
precious  drink  of  the  gods  on  Olympus.  In  an  evil 
hour  he  forgot  himself,  and  carried  some  with  him 
to  his  earthly  home.  The  indignant  masters  of 
heaven  and  earth  condemned  him  for  such  grievous 
misdeed  to  suffer  everlasting  thirst  in  the  dark  re- 
gions where  Pluto  reigned  supreme,  and  the  souls 
of  the  wicked  met  their  reward.     There  the  unfor- 


284  WATER. 

tunate  king  stood,  day  after  day,  in  the  midst  oi 
sweet  swelling  waters,  that  ever  rose  playfully, 
temptingly  up  to  his  parched  lips,  and  ever  fell 
back  in  bitter  mockery  at  the  very  instant  when  re- 
hef  seemed  at  hand,  and  torturing  thirst  about  to 
be  quenched.  Could  human  ingenuity  devise  a 
more  fearful  infliction  of  ceaseless  pain,  adding  to 
all  the  horrors  of  fiercest  bodily  suffering  the  soul's 
unutterable,  ever-new  anguish? 

And  yet  men  daily  endure  hke  sufferings  now  on 
the  earth.  The  weary  wanderer  through  the  desert, 
and  the  bold  mariner  in  the  seas  of  the  arctic,  the  be- 
calmed sailor  in  the  tropics,  and  the  lost  emigrant 
crossing  the  vast  dry  plains  of  the  Far  West — all 
succumb  to  the  same  dread  enemy.  Thirst,  or,  if 
they  escape  by  the  mercy  of  God,  remember  ever 
after  the  days  of  their  torture  with  shuddering  hor- 
ror. For  "even  the  youths  shall  be  faint  and 
weary,"  and  painful  beyond  words  is  that  feeling 
when  the  "  heart  sinks,"  and  the  soul  longeth  to 
part  from  the  earth-born  body.  A  fierce  tyrant  is 
Hunger,  and  grimly  it  gnaws  at  our  strength,  until 
even  the  strong  are  "  burnt  with  hunger  and  de- 
voured." But  the  most  cruel  of  all  mere  bodily 
wants,  that  try  the  soul  of  man  as  in  a  furnace,  is 
Thirst.  It  breaks  the  tower  of  man's  fortitude,  it 
loosens  even  the  silver  chords  of  the  strongest  of 
earthly  affections,  the  love  of  a  mother  :  "  And  the 
water  was  spent  in  the  bottle,  and  Hagar  cast  the 
child  under  one  of  the  shrubs;  and  she  went  and 
set  her  down  over  against  him  a  good  way  off,  as  it 
were  a  bowshot,  for  she  said.  Let  me  not  see  the 


THE   USES   OP   WATER.  285 

death  of  the  child.  And  she  sat  over  against  him, 
and  hfted  up  her  voice  and  wept." 

Water,  so  indispensable  for  the  economy  of  na- 
ture, is  not  less  necessary  for  the  existence  of  man. 
Every  part  of  our  body,  our  bones  included,  con- 
tains water;  our  food  of  every  kind  is  mixed  up 
with  water,  and  only  thus  becomes  nutritious,  and 
oven  certain  higher  functions  can  only  be  performed 
by  its  aid,  as  sight  is  possible  only  by  the  liquid  be- 
hind the  pupil.  This  alone  would  require  a  con- 
stant supply  of  water  for  our  existence.  But  as 
our  body  needs,  besides,  certain  organic  substances, 
like  iron,  salts,  lime,  etc.,  to  build  up  its  more  solid 
parts,  and  to  maintain  certain  organs  in  activity, 
water  is  needed  to  bring  these  elements  and  to 
introduce  them  into  the  system.  It  is  altogether 
indispensable  for  the  process  of  digestion,  not  only 
by  dissolving  and  distributing  our  food,  but  also  by 
keeping  up  the  circulation  of  the  blood  and  all 
other  fluid  parts  of  the  system. 

Spring  water,  containing,  as  we  have  seen,  a 
slight  admixture  of  carbonic  acid,  has  thus  a  cool- 
ing power  which  may  increase  to  slight  intoxica- 
tion. Water  cools  us  when  we  drink  it,  bathe  in  it, 
or  pour  it  on  wounds,  because  it  does  not  easily 
heat,  and  thus  withdraws  a  certain  amount  of  calo- 
ric from  the  body.  Hence  the  soothing  and  cura- 
tive effects  which  water  has  in  cases  of  sickness. 
For  these  combined  purposes  man  consumes,  under 
ordinary  circumstances,  from  three  to  four  pints  of 
water  per  day ;  a  less  quantity  would  cause  real 
physical  suffering.     It  may  be  imagined,  therefore, 


286  WATEK. 

what  a  great  influence  the  salts  which  water  holds 
in  solution,  even  in  small  quantities,  must  exercise 
over  the  animal  economy.  Nor  is  it  sufficient  to 
drink  these  three  or  four  pints  of  water  a  day  ;  the 
water  must  be  wholesome  and  of  good  quahty. 
Opinion  in  every  age  has  attributed  to  the  action  of 
bad  water  certain  accidental  pathological  effects, 
certain  endemic  diseases,  and  although  these  popu- 
lar impressions  have  no  doubt  been  often  exaggerat- 
ed, and  these  theories  occasionally  rest  on  false 
premises,  it  is  none  the  less  true  that  some  waters 
are  highly  deleterious  and  dangerous.  It  is  easy  to 
understand,  on  the  same  principle,  how  waters  con- 
taining salts  favorable  to  our  system  and  the  devel- 
opment of  the  organs,  and  holding  in  solution  these 
gaseous  products,  which  are  best  calculated  to 
facilitate  digestion,  become  through  daily  use  the 
surest,  most  valuable,  and  most  rational  of  hygienic 
agents. 

Fresh  water  may  be  divided  into  rain-water, 
spring-water,  the  water  of  rivers,  of  lakes,  of 
ponds,  and  of  wells. 

Rain-water,  when  just  collected,  is  not  indeed  ab- 
solutely pure,  but  is  the  purest  to  be  found  in  na- 
ture. It  has,  however,  the  defect  of  not  holding 
any  calcareous  matter  in  solution,  of  not  being  nu- 
tritious, and  of  not  containing  sufficient  air  in  solu- 
tion ;  hence  it  is  insipid  and  of  a  sickly-sweet  taste. 
The  water  of  ponds  and  pools,  rich  in  decomposed 
organic  matter,  has  an  odor  so  disagreeable  as  to 
unfit  it  for  table  use.  Springs,  lakes,  rivers,  wells 
or   cisterns,    are    the    only    reservoirs    of    drinka- 


THE   USES   OF  WATEll.  287 

bJe  water;  but  the  ingredients  of  the  water  they 
contain  are  so  different  that  it  is  a  serious  question 
to  which  of  them  the  preference  ought  to  be 
given. 

Water  may  be  considered  good  when  it  is  fresh, 
limpid,  inodorous,  not  inclined  to  become  turbid 
when  boiled;  when  it  leaves  but  Httle  sediment 
after  evaporation ;  when  its  taste  is  sweet  and  plea- 
sant, and  neither  salt  nor  insipid;  when  it  holds 
air  in  solution ;  when  it  melts  soap  easily  with- 
out forming  clots,  and  when  it  boils  vegetables 
well. 

Cistern- water,  employed  in  countries  which  are 
deficient  in  springs  and  rivers,  does  not  answer 
these  requirements,  for  the  rain  which  trickles 
down  from  the  roofs  of  houses  carries  along  with  it 
organic  and  mineral  substances  ;  it  is  true  that  this 
matter  sinks  to  the  bottom,  and  the  water  becomes 
pure  after  re&ting  a  few  days;  but  it  may  be 
changed  again  by  the  decomposition  of  the  organic 
matter,  which  takes  up  and  carries  away  the  oxy- 
gen it  contains,  and  this  leaves  only  an  insipid,  dis- 
agreeable and  highly  deleterious  liquid. 

"  Except  in  rare  cases,  water  which  holds  in  solu- 
tion a  perceptible  proportion  of  organic  matter,  be- 
comes soon  putrid,  and  acquires  qualities  which  are 
deleterious.  It  is  evident  that  diarrhoea,  dysentery, 
and  other  acute  or  chronic  affections  have  been  in- 
duced endemically  by  the  continued  use  of  water 
holding  organic  matter  in  large  proportions,  either 
in  solution  or  in  suspension.  It  is  admitted  as  the 
result  of  universal  observation,  that  the  less  organic 


288  WATER. 

matter  is  held  by  the  water  we  drink,  the  more 
wholesome  it  is."^ 

To  these  remarks  we  may  add  that  in  certain 
towns,  such  as  Cadiz,  in  Spain,  where  each  house 
possesses  a  cistern,  care  is  taken  to  let  off  by  taps 
the  first  rain  which  falls  from  the  sky,  and  only 
when  the  impurities  of  the  air,  of  roofs,  and  of  ca- 
nals, have  thus  been  carried  off,  is  the  rain  which 
the  clouds  continue  to  pour  upon  the  city,  carefully 
collected. 

Well  and  spring  water,  also,  is  rarely  pure ;  for 
the  pure  water  of  the  heavens  is  itself  one  of  the 
most  eager  of  drinkers.  If  there  be  impure  gases 
in  the  air  through  which  it  falls,  it  will  absorb  them. 
If  there  be  earthy  or  mineral  salts  in  the  earth 
through  which  it  soaks,  it  will  absorb  these  also. 
According  to  the  nature  of  the  soil,  therefore,  will 
be  the  nature  of  the  spring  or  the  stream.  If  the 
water  fall  upon  granite,  slate,  or  like  formations, 
upon  which  it  can  lie,  dissolving  nothing,  it  remains 
pure.  A  chemist  or  an  engineer  fairly  versed  in  ana- 
lyses, can  hence  tell  from  examination  of  the  water 
of  a  district  what  its  geology  is ;  or,  if  he  knows  its 
geology,  he  can  describe  its  water.  Even  the  lay- 
man need  not  long  doubt.  Regions  of  granite  and 
clay  slate  are  usually  covered  with  moss,  peat,  or 
heath,  and  the  soft  rainwater,  that  is  so  ready  to 
dissolve  anything  soluble,  will  give  a  dark  tinge  to 
streams  flowing  from  rocks  clothed  with  this  kind 
of  vegetation.     Rain  falling  upon  the  new  red  sand- 

•  Boutron  and  Boudet,  Annual  of  French  Waters,  1851. 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  289 

sloue,  chalk  or  oolites,  will  yield  water  containing 
Lime,  magnesia,  iron,  sulphur,  and  thereby  made 
heavier,  harder,  and  less  fit  for  use.  Generally 
speaking,  the  deeper  the  water  sinks,  the  more  earthy 
matter  it  holds  in  solution ;  deep  well  water,  there- 
fore, is  apt  to  be  hard.  Hot  springs,  we  have  seen, 
are  exceptional,  for  they  may  rise  through  inverted 
syphon-veins  and  fissures,  from  a  depth  of  thousands 
of  feet,  while  the  usual  limit  to  which  water  can 
soak,  is  found  to  be  about  900  or  1,000  feet. 

It  is  astonishing  how  much  rock  the  springs  and 
rivers  carry  on  their  light  waves,  and  even  more 
wonderful  how  much  rock  goes  into  the  stomachs  of 
those  who  drink  such  waters.  In  Thames  water, 
and  most  of  the  waters  supplying  London,  lime  is 
found  to  the  amount  of  nearly  16  grains  to  the  gal- 
lon. A  million  of  gallons  hold,  therefore,  a  ton  of 
lime,  and  as  the  great  city  drinks  about  160,000,- 
000  of  gallons,  60,000  tons  of  lime  are  pumped  iuto 
London  with  its  year's  supply  of  water — a  mountain 
of  lime  that  would  make  mortar  enough  to  Wild  a 
large  suburb ! 

Lime  injures  the  coats  of  the  stomach  when  taken 
in  the  water  we  drink;  when  we  wash  with  such 
water,  it  curdles  soap  and  takes  away  the  beauty  of 
the  skin.  Ladies  know  that  pure  soft  water  is  the 
truest  beauty  wash,  and  that  there  is  no  cosmetic 
that  wiU  counteract  the  bad  effect  of  hard  water  on 
the  complexion.  Grooms  and  trainers  take  good 
care  to  give  good  soft  water  to  their  horses,  and 
where  a  supply  cannot  be  had,  large  tanks  are  formed 
in  which  to  store  rain  water  for  their  use.     Among 


290  WATER. 

the  Alpine  oolites  and  limestones,  on  the  contrary, 
pale  faces,  wenSj  and  cretinism  abound.  Vegetables 
are  of  the  same  mind  with  animals  as  to  the  whole- 
some sort  of  drinking  water. 

A  glass  of  pure  spring  water  is  an  article  turned 
out  by  sea,  sky,  and  earth,  and  worked  upon  their 
grandest  scale  under  the  eye  of  the  sun.  The  less 
it  is  of  the  earth,  earthy,  the  better  for  those  who 
require  more  of  it  than  mere  eye-service. 

The  soft  water  of  rivers  is  the  impurest  of  all, 
save  only  the  briny  floods  of  the  ocean.  They  be- 
tray, as  we  have  seen,  even  to  the  eye,  their  impur- 
ities in  bright  colors.  The  glaciers  of  Iceland  and 
the  slopes  of  the  Andes  send  milk-white  rivers,  filled 
with  white  soils,  into  the  sterile  plains  at  their  feet. 
Streams  that  pass  these  boggy  lakes  or  peaty  re- 
gions emerge  as  brown  as  they  are  bitter,  and  rocks 
of  red  marl  will  burden  their  rivers  with  brilliant 
oxide  of  iron.  Man,  however,  has  not  only  become 
accustomed  to  these  solid  additions  to  his  daily  bev- 
erage, but  seems  to  reward  himself  after  a  while  by 
a  special  delight  in  the  taste  of  muddy  waters.  The 
dusky  fluid  of  the  Nile  is  sweet  to  the  palate,  and  the 
children  of  Egypt  long  and  yearn  for  its  waters  as 
the  Swiss  does  for  his  beloved  home  in  the  moun- 
tains. The  sacred  Ganges  rewards  the  faithful  who 
carry  its  waters  to  the  most  distant  provinces,  with 
abstract  blessings  and  with  a  genuine  sensual  enjoy- 
ment. Our  own  Mississippi  water,  so  repugnant  to 
the  traveller  at  first  sight,  is  a  favorite  with  those 
who  dwell  on  the  river,  and  often  liked  because  of 
its  pecuUar  color,  and  for  its  admixture.     Generally, 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  291 

however,  the  water  of  rivers  is  clarified  for  use  ;  that 
of  the  Ganges  by  nibbing  certain  nuts  on  the  edges 
of  the  vessel  in  which  it  is  kept ;  that  of  the  Nile 
by  a  similar  use  of  bitter  almonds.  Thus  we  are 
taught  by  the  Great  Master  that  the  bitter  waters  of 
Marali  were  made  sweet  by  the  use  of  a  tree  which 
the  Lord  showed  Moses. 


DOMESTIC  AND  INDUSTRIAL   USES. 

The  consumption  of  water  for  external  use, — that 
is  to  say,  for  the  pui-poses  of  health  and  cleanliness, 
— may  be  estimated,  in  towns  like  Paris,  as  averag- 
ing two  gallons  to  each  inhabitant,  including  only  the 
ordinary  citizen  who  rents  the  whole  or  part  of  a 
house,  and  does  not  exercise  any  branch  of  industry 
which  requires  a  large  supply  of  wate?;,  such  as  that 
of  a  dyer,  or  brewer,  or  keeper  of  public  baths  and 
wash-houses,  and  who  has  neither  domestic  animals 
to  be  taken  care  of,  horses  to  be  watered,  a  carriage 
to  be  cleaned,  nor  a  garden  to  be  watered.  Including 
these  exceptional  causes  of  demand  for  water  we 
reach  an  estimate  of  about  ten  gallons  to  each 
inhabitant. 

Besides  such  domestic  and  industrial  uses,  water 
has  to  be  provided  for  watering  the  roads  when  the 
heat  of  the  summer  changes  streets  and  public  walks 
into  so  many  sandy  deserts  ;  for  cleaning  gutters 
and  sewers,  to  obviate  the  dangers  of  standing 
water ;  for  sewerage  and  for  cooling  the  air,  by 
means  of  fountains  in  open  squares  and  pleasure 
gardens. 


292  WATER. 

All  these  supplies  of  water  are  imperiously  de- 
manded by  public  hygiene ;  but  it  need  not  be 
added  that  in  all  these  cases  the  quality  of  water 
signifies  but  little  ;  whether  it  be  impregnated  with 
gypsum  or  limestone,  whether  it  be  tepid  or  cold,  it 
will,  for  all  that,  accomplish  its  cleaning  mission. 

It  is  not  so,  however,  with  water  used  for  drink, 
and  for  cooking  and  washing  purposes ;  it  is  not  so, 
even  with  water  used  for  feeding  steam  coppers  and 
boilers. 

Calcareous  waters  leave  an  abundant  deposit, 
which  encrusts  coppers  and  boilers,  and  forms  a 
hard  and  resistant  coating,  or  stone  lining,  that 
covers  and  seriously  injures  the  metal  of  the 
boiler. 

This  coating  keeps  the  heat  from  communicating 
with  the  hquid  within  ;  and  if  the  metal  of  the  boiler 
becomes  red-hot,  while  the  water,  held  as  it  were  in 
its  coating  of  stone,  is  in  ebulhtion,  the  calcareous 
deposit  is  apt  to  crack,  the  water  comes  in  contact 
with  the  red-hot  metallic  sides  of  the  boiler,  and 
suddenly  changes  into  steam.  The  mass  of  steam 
thus  suddenly  set  free  in  a  space  which  has  become 
too  narrow,  develops  instantly  an  enormous  expan- 
sive force,  the  boiler  bursts,  and  woe  to  the  work- 
men who  are  near  it !  Water  which  contains  nitrate 
of  magnesia  or  chloride  of  magnesium  presents,  also, 
grave  inconveniences;  for  these  salts  decompose 
under  the  influence  of  heat,  and  deposit  nitric  acid 
and  chlorohydric  acid,  which  soon  corrode  the 
metal  of  the  boiler  and  all  the  metal  pipes  which 
they  traverse. 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  293 

These  inconveniences  are  sometimes  remedied  by 
purifying  the  waters  first  by  chemical  processes. 
Thus,  to  prevent  the  incrustation  of  coppers,  the 
waters  are  mixed  with  a  certain  kind  of  clay.  This 
mixture  also  soon  forms  a  deposit,  but  instead  of 
furnishing  a  hard  and  brittle  coating  it  appears  in 
the  shape  of  a  fine  dust,  which  can  be  easily  re- 
moved. Industry  has,  moreover,  discovered  other 
methods  by  which  water  may  be  freed  of  its  organic 
and  earthy  matters,  and  employs  a  great  variety  of 
filtering  systems. 

Finally,  the  following  are  the  conditions  which 
public  health  imperatively  demands  : 

Pure  and  fresh  water  in  abundance,  for  the  in- 
habitants of  every  city. 

Water  of  ordinary  quality,  in  great  abundance, 
for  washing  the  streets,  cleaning  sewers,  watering 
roads,  supplying  public  and  private  fountains, — ^in 
short,  for  all  the  exigencies  of  domestic  and  indus- 
trial uses. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE   WATER,  OF   PARIS. — A   GLANCE   AT   THE   PAST. 

Tho  aqueducts  of  Rome  are  veritable  monuments  of  the  past ;  the  Ro- 
mans, in  order  to  establish  them,  pierced  mountains,  levelled  valleys,  and 
formed  canals,  which  they  suspended  in  places  where  there  was  no  ground  for 
them  to  rest  upon.  They  have  long  rows  of  arches,  which  bear  a  river,  and, 
sometimes,  one  or  two  rivers  one  above  another,  at  a  prodigious  height." 

Pr.rsv.     Trnnxlnied  by  Bezorry. 

The  first  inhabitants  of  Paris  drew  the  waters 
which  served  for  their  aHmentation  directly  from  the 
Seine.  At  a  later  period  the  Romans  constructed 
the  aqueduct  of  Arcueil,  and  the  remains  of  tlieir 
labor  are  still  to  be  seen  in  the  Emperor  Julian's 
Palais  des  Thermes.  This  aqueduct  perished  with 
the  Roman  empire,  and  it  was  not  until  the  eight- 
eenth century  that  the  monks  procured  water  from 
the  springs  of  Belleville  and  Pres  St.  Gervais.  This 
impure  and  selenitic  water  would  now  be  rejected 
by  all,  and  yet  Paris  knew  no  other  water  during 
more  than  four  centuries,  (from  1200  to  1608),  until 
the  time  when  the  pump  of  the  Samaritan  woman 
was  established  on  the  Pont  Neuf. 

During  the  whole  of  the  Middle  Ages  and  the 
Renaissance  period  the  sovereigns  of  France,  never 
very  solicitous  for  the  wants  and  the  welfare  of  the 


THE  USES   OF   WATEJl.  295 

people,  granted  large  monopolies  to  the  nobles  and 
the  monasteries.  The  abuse  became  such  that  many 
portions  of  Paris  were  on  the  point  of  being  aban- 
doned for  want  of  water  in  the  public  fountains.  Not- 
withstanding the  famous  edict  of  Charles  VI.  (Oct. 
1392) ;  notwithstanding  the  noble  initiative  taken 
by  a  Provost  of  the  Merchants,  who,  in  1457,  caused 
the  aqueduct  of  Belleville  to  be  rebuilt,  favoritism 
still  continued  to  triumph,  and  the  people  continued 
to  be  without  water. 

In  1553  Paris  only  received  a  quantity  of  water 
equivalent  to  about  a  pint  and  a  half  to  each  inhab- 
itant. This  quantity  would  have  scarcely  sufficed 
for  a  city  a  hundred  times  less  populous. 

When  the  evil  had  become  flagrant,  when  the  com- 
plaints of  the  inhabitants,  timid  as  they  still  were, 
reached  the  ear  of  the  government,  when  the  dearth 
of  water  had  become  too  threatening,  when  the 
fountains  no  longer  dropped  anything  but  tears,  an 
ordinance  of  the  police  deUvered  by  the  Provost  of 
the  Merchants,  commanded  every  monopolist  to  pre- 
sent his  title.  This  ordinance  was  issued  in  bad 
faith  ;  it  was  a  hollow  form,  a  shameful  mockery  and 
delusion  which  always  ends  in  some  new  monopoly, 
and  re-established  things  in  a  state  more  deplorable 
than  before.  There  was.  neither  order  nor  responsi- 
bility, but  everywhere  injustice  and  iniquity.  In 
connection  with  water  as  with  everything  else,  it  was 
always  the  same  sad  story  of  the  rich  being  fattened 
at  the  expense  of  the  poor ;  it  was  the  great  lord 
draining,  on  his  own  authority,  the  conduits  of  the 
town  before  the  eyes  of  the  people,  from  their  own 


296  WATER. 

humble  dwellings,  to  his  mansion,  where  lie  wanted 
a  new  fountain,  perhaps  merely  for  ornament ;  or  it 
was  a  community  of  monks  who  only  consulted  their 
own  selfish  interests,  and  watered  their  lands  with 
the  most  revolting  prodigality,  unmindful  of  the 
thirst  of  the  honest  burgher,  the  laborer  and  the 
artisan. 

It  was  reserved  for  a  great  king  to  remedy  the  evil 
by  energetic  measures,  Henry  IV.  at  length  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  his  edicts  obeyed.  All  the  pipes 
which  conveyed  water  to  the  Abbey  lands  and  the 
palaces  of  the  rich,  were  cut  off  without  mercy  ;  a 
minute  revision  of  the  titles  of  monopoly  was  car- 
ried out  with  unusual  care  and  impartiahty,  and  the 
number  of  the  monopoHsts  reduced  to  fourteen.  For 
the  first  time  money  was  paid  for  these  monopolies, 
and  Martin  Langlois,  Provost  of  the  Merchants,  was 
the  first  to  pay  to  the  city  a  rent  of  35  livres  10  sous, 
for  the  right  of  getting  water  from  the  fountain  of 
Barre-du-Bec* 

Abuses,  like  weeds,  grow  up  in  proportion  as  yon 
try  to  tear  them  up,  and  so  great  an  evil  could  not 
be  so  promptly  abolished.  In  1608  the  want  of 
water  again  made  itself  felt.  Henry  IV.  again  re- 
duced the  number  of  monopoHes  and  set  a  noble 
example  by  submitting  himself  to  considerable  cur- 
tailment. The  fountain  of  the  Samaritan  woman  was 
erected  on  the  Pont  Neuf,  and  the  same  year  saw  the 
iaauguration  of  an  admirable  project — the  recon- 
struction of  the  aqueduct  of  Arcueil.     But  this  work, 


Registers  of  the  City,  vol.  xiv. ,  fol.  640. 


THE  USES'  OP  WATER.  297 

arrested  in  its  progress  by  the  death  of  the  king, 
was  not  completed  until  much  later  under  Mary  de 
Medicis.  Yet  all  things  considered  the  reign  of 
Henry  IV.  is  a  page  in  the  history  of  Paris,  which 
can  be  perused  with  satisfaction.  It  was  then 
that  for  the  first  time  hydraulic  pumps  were  made 
use  of,  for  the  first  time  also  money  was  paid  to  the 
town  for  the  privilege  of  holding  monopolies,  and 
all  these  improvements  are  gems  in  the  diadem 
which  decorate  the  memory  of  one  of  the  greatest 
kings.  Under  the  next  sovereigns,  however,  the 
abuses  reappeared  with  new  and  scandalous  energy, 
and  several  unhealthy  quarters  of  the  city  were  on 
the'eve  of  being  abandoned.  All  the  fountains  be- 
came dry  while  Louis  Quatorze  was  spending  mil- 
lions of  money  wrung  from  his  people  in  forming 
the  famous  water-works  at  Versailles  for  the  delec- 
tation of  his  court.  In  1671,  however,  a  new  pump, 
that  of  Notre  Dame,  was  constructed,  but  notwith- 
standing this  highly  beneficial  work,  Paris  still  con- 
tinued to  receive  only  about  five  pints  to  each  in- 
habitant. At  the  commencement  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  numerous  papers  published  on  the  subject 
of  the  Water  Supply  of  Paris  showed  that  public 
attention  was  turning  to  that  great  question,  but  a 
few  unimportant  improvements  were  the  sole  result 
of  long  and  unproductive  discussions.  De  Parcieux, 
somewhat  later,  suggested  a  plan  for  supplying  the 
capital  from  the  waters  of  the  Yvette,  a  little  river 
which  falls  into  the  Seine  above  Long  Jumeau.  This 
plan  was  eagerly  discussed,  and  public  opinion  then, 
as  at  the  present  day,  hesitated   between  plans  for 


298  WATER. 

obtaining  water  from  a  distance,  and  others  for  rais- 
ing the  level  of  the  Seine  water  by  means  of  engines. 
In  1767  the  Chevalier  d'Auxiron,  advocating  a  system 
of  raising  the  water  of  the  Seine  by  new  engines, 
replied  to  de  Parcieux.  The  two  adversaries  became 
involved  in  warm  and  eager  discussions,  and  while 
they  were  engaged  in  a  mighty  war  of  words,  and 
the  public  took  sides  with  eagerness,  no  water  came. 
In  1771  the  plan  of  obtaining  water  from  a  distance 
and  carrying  it  into  Paris  by  aqueducts  found  a 
powerful  supporter  in  the  illustrious  Lavoisier,  who 
lent  to  his  project  all  the  weight  of  his  mighty 
genius. 

At  length  appeared  two  able  men,  both  mer- 
chants, who  cut  the  Gordian  knot  of  these  diffi- 
culties. The  brothers  Perier  proposed  to  the  cita- 
to establish,  at  their  own  expense,  a  system  of  ma- 
chinery on  the  Seine,  consisting  of  a  number  of  fire 
engines,  by  the  aid  of  which  150  metres  of  water 
could  be  raised  daily.  The  citizens  of  Paris  were 
about  to  see  at  work,  under  their  own  eyes,  steam 
engines  which  had  been  constructed  in  the  workshop 
of  Watt ;  they  were  about  to  drink  water  raised  by 
the  apparatus  which  was  then  exciting  so  justly 
universal  admiration,  and  public  opinion  was  quite 
ready  to  declare  in  favor  of  the  Periers'  system.  On 
February  the  7th,  1777,  the  Parliament  authorized 
the  brothers  Perier,  by  letters  patent,  to  estabhsh  at 
their  expense,  in  localities  designated  by  the  Provost 
of  the  Merchants,  fire  engines,  which  were  to  carry 
the  waters  of  the  Seine  into  the  capital.  The  new 
company  was  organized  forthwith,  but  unfortunately 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  299 

began  operations  by  a  serious  blunder  ;  the  first 
steam  pump  being  erected  at  Chaillot,  near  the 
mouths  of  the  city  sewers. 

Delays,  unlooked-for  obstacles,  unforeseen  disap- 
pointments, put  a  stop,  for  some  time,  to  the  work, 
and,  unfortunately,  public  capital  was  led  into  a 
different  channel.  The  appearance  of  the  ill-fated 
financier,  Law,  the  creation  of  his  ruinous  system, 
and  the-  commencement  of  stock  jobbing,  turned  the 
heads  of  the  money-making  public,  and  caused  the 
water  system,  like  so  many  others,  to  burst  like  a 
bubble. 

The  company  indeed  gave  water  in  1782,  but  the 
promises  it  had  given  were  so  badly  kept,  its  most 
solemn  engagements  so  little  respected,  that  govern- 
ment saw  itself  compelled  to  interfere,  and  the 
undertaking  was  put  a  stop  to  altogether.  A  famous 
lawsuit,  indeed,  was  carried  on  for  some  time  on 
the  subject,  in  which  two  illustrious  names  were  en- 
gaged. Beaumarchais  defended  the  company,  and 
Mirabeau  was  his  adversary.  The  author  of  "  Le 
Mariage  de  Figaro,"  however,  proved  incapable  of 
parrying  the  blows  of  the  matchless  orator ;  his 
accustomed  genius  deserted  him,  and  the  arms  of 
the  pleader  fell  from  his  hands.  Truth  lost  its 
charms  to  the  public  eye,  and  the  sonorous  voice, 
the  clear,  precise  statements  of  Count  Mirabeau 
crushed  the  Water  Supply  Company  to  atoms,  and 
threw  it  into  the  most  complete  disrepute. 

The  eighteenth  century  was,  nevertheless,  in  this 
as  in  other  respects,  one  of  progress.  At  the  time 
when  the  French  Revolution  broke  out,  Paris  re- 


300  WATER. 

ceived  enough  water  daily  to  furnish  each  one  of  its 
647,755  inhal:>itants  about  twenty  pints  per  head  in 
24  hours.  This  volume  of  water  would  barely  suf- 
fice for  a  population  seven  times  less  numerous, 
consequently  the  progress  due  to  the  eighteenth 
century  is  not  of  much  interest ;  but  an  age  that 
listened  to  Voltaire  and  Kousseau  had  but  little 
time  to  bestow  upon  problems  of  this  description. 

During  a  long  series  of  years,  the  sad  political 
troubles  and  terrible  convulsions  of  France  diverted 
the  minds  of  men  from  questions  purely  adminis- 
trative ;  capital,  moreover,  left  the  country,  and 
financial  speculations  on  the  subject  of  water  were 
not  much  in  favor.  It  was  only  in  the  year  1797 
that  once  more  a  bold  enterprise  was  started, — the 
construction  of  the  canal  of  Ourcq.  After  long  de- 
bates and  protracted  discussions,  and  after  having 
passed  through  most  unexpected  phases,  this  pro- 
ject appeared  hkely  to  be  actually  carried  out,  under 
the  auspices  of  the  first  Napoleon.  On  the  29th 
Floreal,  of  the  year  X.,  the  Legislative  Assembly 
passed  a  decree,  ordaining  that  "  a  canal  should  be 
opened  to  turn  the  river  Ourcq,  and  that  this  river 
should  be  conveyed  to  Paris,  into  a  basin  near  La 
Villette."  The  first  works  were  commenced  in  1801, 
and,  on  the  15th  of  September  of  the  following 
year,  M.  Girard  assumed  the  direction. 

Carried  on  with  activity  till  1812,  suspended  by 
national  disasters,  and  again  recommenced  at  a 
much  more  recent  period,  this  work  was  completed 
in  1837.  After  the  completion  of  the  canal  of  Ourcq, 
after  the  estabUshment  of  eighteen  steam  engines, 


THE  USES  OF  WATER.  301 

which  drew  water  from  the  Seine,  and  the  boring  of 
the  Artesian  wells  of  Grenelle  and  Passy,  the  city 
of  Paris  received,  in  the  year  1864,  195,000  cubic 
metres  of  water  a  day. 

This  water,  if  analyzed,  will  be  found  to  be  in  the 
following  proportions : 

Water  from  the  Ourcq, 105,000 

Water  from  the  Seiue, .  80,000 

Water  from  the  Artesian  wells,    10,000 

Total,  195,000 

A  calculation   which   would   estabHsh   a   mean   of 

three   gallons   to   each  inhabitant  in   24  hours,  a 

quantity  very  inferior  to  that  wliich  is  received  by 

other  great  cities,  as  may  be  seen  by  the  following 

table: 

GALLONS   TO    EACH    INHABITANT    EVERY   TWENTY-FOUR   HOURS. 

Modern  Rome, 207 

New  York, 124^ 

Carcassonne, 87^ 

Marseilles, 40i 

Genoa, • 30J 

Glasgow,   22 

London, 20 

Philadelphia, 20 

Geneva, 16 

Edinburgh, 11 

In  almost  every  country  and  city  of  the  world, 
where  any  attention  is  paid  to  the  weU-being  of  the 
citizens,  the  important  question  of  water  is  promi- 
nent. Few  of  the  great  capitals  of  Europe  are  with- 
out more  or  less  magnificent  works,  supplying  an 
abundant  quantity  ;  but  they  are  even  surpassed  by 
the  lavish  prodigality  of  our  own  cities.     That  emi- 


302 


WATER. 


nently  wise  and  practical  statesman,  Benjamin 
Franklin,  suggested,  as  far  back  as  1764,  after  a 
visitation  of  yellow  fever,  the  importance  of  furnish- 
ing Philadelphia  with  a  copious  supply  of  pure, 
fresh  water,  and  in  his  will  urged  the  matter  upon 
the  authorities  of  the  city.     Before  the  end  of  the 


w^i 


^mwh^-'^ 


^M^^^4^^^ 


-m^ 


View  of  the  Schuylkill  near  Philadelphia. 

century  measures  were  taken  to  carry  out  the  sug- 
gestion, and  the  famous  water  works  of  the  city, 
drawing  an  inexhaustible  supply  from  the  Schuyl- 
kill, and  enlarged  from  time  to  time  with  the  in- 
crease of  the  demand  and  the  growth  of  the  city,  are 
now  able  to  furnish  over  forty  million  gallons  a  day, 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  303 

besides  providing    numerous    steam    engines    and 
manufactories  with  the  water  thej  require. 

On  the  summit  of  an  eminence,  known  as  the 
Mount,  and  towering  more  than  60  feet  above  the 
most  elevated  part  of  the  city,  the  falls  and  the 
river  below,  an  area  of  nearly  30  acres  holds  the  sup- 
ply of  water  for  a  large  portion  of  the  city.  The  whole 
is  divided  into  four  separate  reservoirs,  capable  of 
containing  over  27,000,000  gallons,  and  one  of  these 
is  again  divided  into  three  sections  for  the  purpose 
filtration.  Like  every  other  part  of  these  famous 
Fairmount  Water-works,  as  they  are  appropriately 
called,  this  reservoir  also  is  beautifully  kept,  and 
surrounded  by  a  gravelled  walk  from  which  a  su- 
perb view  of  the  city  and  the  adjoining  country  may 
be  obtained.  The  four  reservoirs  are  twelve  feet  deep, 
lined  with  stone  and  paved  with  brick,  laid  in  a  bed 
of  clay,  in  strong  cement,  and  made  water-tight. 
The  river  not  having  sufficient  head  to  fill  the 
basins,  the  water  has  to  be  raised  by  forcing  pumps 
from  a  place  where  the  Schuylkill  is  dammed  across. 
These  pumps  are  ingeniously  made  Lo  be  moved  by 
the  current  of  the  river  itself,  and  thus  the  water  may 
be  said  to  rise,  after  all,  by  its  own  force.  This 
dam  is  1,600  feet  long,  and  the  races  cut  in  solid 
rock,  upward  of  400  feet  long'  and  90  wide ;  each 
one  of  the  eight  pumps  employed  in  the  well-houses, 
als )  built  of  solid  stone,  is  capable  of  raising  one 
and  a  haK  milHon  gallons  an  hour.  Thus  the  four 
reservoirs  of  Fairmount  and  another  large  reservoir, 
capable  of  holding  37,000,000  gallons,  are  easily 
supplied.      Nevertheless   this  amount  only  sufficeH 


804  WAl^K. 

for  ten  wards  of  the  city,  others  being  furnished  by 
the  Schuylkill  Water-works,  above  Fairmount  and 
124  feet  above  high  water,  by  the  Delaware  Water- 
works, on  the  river  of  that  name,  capable  of  furnish- 
ing nine  million  gallons,  and  by  the  24th  Ward 
Water-works  on  the  Schuylkill,  opposite  Fairmount, 
having  no  reservoir,  but  a  stand-pipe  in  the  shape  of 
a  beautiful  tower,  which  is  an  ornament  to  the  city, 
and  from  which  a  superb  view  may  be  obtained. 
The  highest  portions  of  the  city  are  supplied  by  a 
new  large  basin  at  George's  Hill,  an  eighty  acre 
plot  of  land,  the  most  picturesque  part  of  Fairmount 
Park,  and  so  called  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  George,  who 
presented  this  valuable  property  to  the  city. 

Baltimore  has  been  signally  favored  by  nature  in 
having  an  almost  inexhaustible  supply  of  fresh,  pure 
water  in  the  immediate  neighborhood,  and  being  so 
situated  that  by  the  simple  use  of  the  existing  slope 
which  extends  down  to  the  waters  of  Chesapeake 
Bay,  the  precious  element  may  be  easily  and  cheap- 
ly brought  to  every  portion  of  the  city.  Set  upon 
hills  and  surrounded  by  heights  pierced  on  every 
side  by  numbers  of  living  springs,  it  has,  besides, 
its  brooks  and  creeks,  Jones'  Falls,  Gwynn's  Falls, 
Gunpowder  Falls,  and  countless  other  runs,  which  by 
their  very  name  suggest  their  impetuous  character, 
and  the  great  danger  they  bring  in  times  of  higli 
water.  No  other  city  can  boast  of  such  a  wealth  of 
falls  and  dams,  and  the  water-power  that  is  placed 
at  its  disposal  has  been  stated  as  being  sufficient  to 
work  a  million  looms.  Hence,  Baltimore  is  able  to 
do  more  for  the  health,  comfort  and  safety  of  her 


FATRMOUNT  WATER  WORKS,   PIITLADELPHTA. 


THE   USES  OP  WATER.  305 

citizens  by  bestowing  upon  them  a  more  lavish  supply 
of  excellent  water  than  any  other  city  of  our  land. 
Her  lakes,  reservoirs  and  conduits  are  far  beyond 
all  competition.  Thus,  Swan  Lake,  at  the  head  of 
the  Jones'  Falls,  and  about  eight  miles  from  the  city, 
extends  over  116  acres,  and  has,  since  1861,  furnished 
easily  a  supply  of  500,000,000  gallons.  A  dam  60  feet 
thick  and  40  feet  high,  raises  the  water  to  the  pro- 
per height,  and  an  oval  conduit  of  brick  and  cement 
carries  it  thence,  a  distance  of  five  miles,  to  the  re- 
ceiving reservoir  at  Hampden,  passing  on  the  way 
through  a  tunnel  a  mile  long.  This  reservoir,  217 
feet  above  the  tide,  holds  nearly  50,000,000  gallons. 
Mount  Eoyal  Reservoir,  fed  by  large  pipes  laid 
across  the  falls  and  alongside  the  Northern  Central 
Railway,  serves  as  a  base  of  distribution  to  the 
lower  parts  of  the  city ;  it  is  a  beautiful  circular  ba- 
sin, five  acres  in  surface  and  holding  30,000,000 
gallons.  But  even  this  ample  supply  was  not 
deemed  sufficient,  and  a  new  lake  has  recently  been 
formed  on  grounds  adjoining  the  south  side  of  Druid 
Hill  Park  and  purchased  by  the  city  authorities. 
Here  a  natural  basin,  vast  and  convenient,  offered 
an  admirable  opportunity  for  beautifying  the  park 
with  a  large  lake,  and  for  furnishing  at  the  same 
time  the  city  with  a  still  greater  abundance  of  water. 
Druid  Lake,  as  it  is  called,  covers  a  surface  of  55 
acres,  is  at  the  mouth  of  the  drain-pipe  92  feet  deep, 
and  holds  600,000,000  gallons,  at  a  height  of  217 
feet  above  the  tide.  As  the  daily  consumption  of 
water  has  never  been  estimated  at  more  than  ten 
million  gallons,  the  total  capacity  of  the  new  lake 


306  WATER. 

alone  will  suffice  for  a  sixty  days'  supply,  and  Balti- 
more may  justly  boast  of  being  the  best  provided 
with  water,  of  any  city  in  the  Union,  perhaps  in  the 
world. 

The  city  of  New  York  is  furnished  with  its  sup- 
ply of  water  by  what  is  known  as  the  Croton  Aque- 
duct. This  superb  structure,  a  little  over  forty  miles 
long,  from  Croton  Dam  to  the  receiving  reser- 
voir, is,  beyond  comparison,  the  most  import- 
ant of  all  similar  modern  constructions  in  extent 
and  magnificence.  A  dam  constructed  across  the 
river  raises  its  waters  forty  feet  high,  and  forms  a 
lake,  covering  over  400  acres,  and  containing,  with 
a  depth  of  six  feet,  500,000,000  gallons.  Hence, 
without  any  new  supply  from  the  river  source,  the 
quantity  of  water  actually  at  hand  could  furnish 
eight  million  gallons  a  day  for  more  than  two 
months.  Nevertheless  the  increasing  size  of  the  Em- 
pire City  has  made  even  such  a  supply  inadequate 
to  the  demand,  and  new  reservoirs  have  been  added 
since  1842,  when  the  aqueduct  went  first  into  opera- 
tion. Large  storage  reservoirs  and  lakes  have 
also  been  constructed  in  Putnam  County,  at  the 
head  waters  of  Croton  River,  insuring  ample  sup- 
ply for  all  future  wants. 

From  the  dam  to  Harlem  River,  a  distance 
of  about  33  miles,  the  aqueduct  is  built  of  stone, 
brick,  and  cement,  carrying  over  sixty  million  gal- 
lons at  the  rate  of  about  a  mile  and  a  half  an  hour  ; 
it  has  an  inclination  of  a  little  over  a  foot  to  the 
mile.  When  the  gigantic  structure  reaches  Harlem. 
River,  it  changes  into  what  is  popularly  known  as 


THE   USES  OF  WATER.  307 

High  Bridge,  one  of  the  most  magnificent  triumphs 
of  engineering  skill  to  be  found  in  this  country. 
Originally  the  water  was  conveyed  in  a  three-foot 
pipe  down  one  bank  of  the  river  and  up  the  other  : 
this  arrangement,  however,  was  said  to  interfere  with 
the  navigation  of  the  river,  and  the  State  Legisla- 
ture was  induced  to  pass  laws  which  imposed  serious 
restrictions.  Thus  it  became  necessary  to  carry  the 
water  over  a  lofty  granite  bridge  across  the  river, 
and  the  entire  valley,  from  chff  to  cliff,  at  a  point 
where  the  distance  amounts  to  more  than  a  quarter  of 
a  mile.  It  consists  of  eight  principal  arches,  eighty 
feet  wide,  and  with  an  elevation  which  gives  a  hun- 
dred feet  clear  of  the  river  from  the  lower  side.  At 
both  ends,  however,  an  additional  number  of  arches 
with  an  average  span  of  forty-five  feet  each,  extends 
the  bridge  to  a  total  length  of  1,460  feet.  The  whole 
height  of  the  bridge  at  high  water  is  114  feet,  and 
at  this  enormous  elevation  the  water  is  carried  across 
in  immense  iron  pipes,  of  such  a  diameter  that  a  tall 
man  can  conveniently  stand  upright  in  them  ;  and 
over  all  is  a  pathway  for  pedestrians,  thus  earning 
for  the  noble  structure  a  just  claim  to  the  title  of 
High  Bridge.  From  thence  to  the  receiving  reser- 
voir the  pipes  pass  in  an  inverted  siphon  across 
Manhattan  Valley,  descending  on  one  side  109  feet, , 
and  rising  on  the  opposite  bank  to  within  three  feet 
of  their  previous  level. 

The  receiving  reservoir  covers  an  area  of  over  35 
acres,  and  is  capable  of  containing  150,000,000  gal- 
lons of  water.  Iron  pipes  of  smaller  size  carry  it 
then  a  distance  of  over  two  miles  to  the  distributing 


308  WATER. 

reservoir,  tlie  capacity  of  which  is  twenty  milliou 
gallons.  It  is  a  superb  stone  structure,  45  feet  above 
the  streets  of  the  city,  and  covering  a  little  more 
than  four  acres  ;  from  thence  pipes  extending  to  a 
length  of  134  miles  convey  the  water  to  all  the  lower 
parts  of  the  city.  As  there  was  some  difficulty  in 
supplying  the  upper  parts  as  well,  a  new  immense 
reservoir  has  been  constructed  on  the  lofty  bank  at 
the  southern  end  of  the  High  Bridge,  which  will  be 
elevated  enough  to  furnish  water  to  the  highest  por- 
tions of  file  city.  For  this  purpose  a  number  of 
powerful  engines  are  employed,  and  from  this  point 
a  most  extended  and  beautiful  view  may  be  obtained 
of  the  city,  the  bay,  and  all  parts  of  Westchester 
County. 

The  city  of  Brooklyn,  the  third  in  size  in  the 
United  States,  is  supplied  with  excellent  water, 
drawn  from  natural  and  artificial  ponds,  fifteen  to 
tw^enty  miles  distant,  on  Long  Island.  The  water 
is  brought  in  conduits,  or  aqueducts  of  masonry,  to 
East  New  York,  near  the  city  line,  where  it  flows 
into  an  immense  well.  Over  this  well  is  an  engine 
house,  containing  three  powerful  steam  engines, 
each  connected  with  an  enormous  pump,  capable  of 
raising  a  thousand  gallons  (more  than  thirty-two 
barrels)  of  water  to  a  height  of  163  feet  at  every 
stroke,  and  of  making  ten  strokes  per  minute.  Two 
of  these  pumps  are  kept  in  operation  the  greater 
part  of  the  time,  lifting  this  water  into  an  immense 
reservoir  on  Ridgewood  Hill,  having  a  capacity  of 
150,000,000  gallons,  which  is  also  connected  with 
another  within   the   city  limits   on  Prospect  Hill, 


THE  USES  OP  WATER. 

liaving  a  capacity  of  about  20,000,000  gallons. 
From  these  two  reservoirs,  the  water  is  carried  to 
all  parts  of  the  city,  through  260  miles  of  irou 
pipe.  The  amount  of  water  consumed  daily  in  the 
year  1870,  was  18,013,000  gallons,  or  an  average 
of  about  fifty  gallons  daily  for  each  inhabitant. 
The  cost  of  raising  this  water  into  the  reservoirs, 
was  a  Httle  more  than  two  cents  for  each  thousand 
gallons. 

The  city  of  Boston  draws  its  supply  of  water  fi'om 
a  sheet  of  water,  once  modestly  called  Long  Pond, 
but  since  more  pretentiously  known  as  Lake  Oochi- 
tuate,  at  a  distance  of  about  20  miles  from  the  beau- 
tiful fountain  on  Boston  Common,  and  nearly  24 
miles  from  the  great  reservoir  in  East  Boston.  The 
water  is  of  unusual  purity  and  freshness,  and  fur- 
nished at  the  rate  of  seven  and  a  quarter  million 
gallons  a  day.  As  this  was  not  deemed  ample 
enough  for  an  increasing  population,  additional  water 
rights  were  secured  by  the  provident  city,  and  espe- 
cially Jamaica  Pond,  a  sheet  of  water  which  can 
fiu-nish,  according  to  the  stage  of  the  water,  from 
28  to  112  million  gallons.  Cochituate  Lake  is  con- 
fined at  the  outlet  by  a  massive  granite  dam,  and  in 
this  is  constructed  a  flume,  designed  to  hold  water, 
eight  feet  deep.  Under  a  gate-house  of  hammered 
granite  the  aqueduct  itself  begins  and  is  carried  on 
for  14  miles  as  a  conduit  of  brick  masonry ;  then  it 
crosses  Charles  Kiver  in  a  line  of  iron  mains,  and 
finally  passes  by  means  of  two  tunnels  through  the 
towns  of  Newtown  and  Brookline.  The  whole  line 
is  carried  over  the  country  at  such  a  depth  as  no- 


310  WATER. 

where  to  interfere  with  rural  occupations,  being  cov- 
ered by  at  least  four  feet  of  earth  throughout  its 
length,  except  the  culverts  in  crossing  Charles  Eiver, 
and  a  bridge  over  a  valley  in  Needham.  The  two  tun- 
nels are  especially  beautiful  works,  piercing  through 
porphyritic  rock  of  unusual  hardness,  and  exposed 
to  such  influx  of  water,  that  seven  powerful  steam 
engines  had  to  be  kept  constantly  pumping  during 
the  construction.  With  a  descent  of  only  four  feet  in 
14  miles,  and  a  depth  of  three  feet  ten  inches,  the 
aqueduct  nevertheless  conveys  over  10,000,000  gal- 
lons a  day.  It  thus  supplies  first  Brookline  Reser- 
voir, a  structure  covering  38  acres,  with  a  water  sur- 
face of  over  22  acres,  and  a  capacity  of  200,000,000 
gallons.  This  was  originally  a  natural  depression  in 
the  surface,  and  has  only  been  improved  and  per- 
fected by  engineering  skill.  Then  there  are  distrib- 
uting reservoirs  at  Beacon  Hill,  back  of  the  State 
House,  built  of  solid  granite ;  at  Chestnut  Hill,  of 
recent  construction  and  a  favorite  popular  resort, 
and  on  Mount  Washington  at  South  Boston — a 
place  formerly  known  as  Dorchester  Heights,  from 
which  Washington  compelled  the  evacuation  of  Bos- 
ten' by  the  British.  Ten  public  fountains  and  quite 
a  number  of  others,  provided  by  the  munificence  of 
private  citizens,  adorn  different  parts  of  the  city  and 
are  supplied  by  the  Cochituate  Aqueduct. 

A  new  plan  has  been  pursued  by  the  city  of  Chica- 
go, which  has  built,  at  an  expense  of  nearly  half  a  mil- 
lion, an  immense  tunnel  under  the  level  of  Lake  Mich- 
igan, and  thus  obtains  its  daily  supply  of  water.  It  is 
raised  by  pumps  in  a  manner  similar  to  that  of  Brook- 


WATER  CARRIERS. 

'1.  Water  Carrier  of  Malaga.  4.   Water  Carrier  of  Cruayuiart. 

2.  Pongo.  5    I'Vench  Wnti-r  (  iinier. 

3.  Waft-r  (Carrier  of  Mexico.  G    ArMhiin  Woiiimm  nt  the  ["ouiit.iin. 


THE  USES  OF  WATER.  311 

lyn,  and  in  amount  and  extent  of  distributing  pipe,  is 
about  the  same. 

What  an  immense  gain  this  is  in  comparison  with 
the  old-fashioned  way  of  paying  water  carriers,  who 
sell  the  precious  liquid  by  the  tumbler,  in  the 
streets,  or  carry  it,  by  the  pailful,  to  the  top  of 
lofty  houses,  as  is  still  the  custom  in  Spain  and 
other  countries  !  Even  now,  many  a  city  in  the  Old 
World,  possessing  no  water  of  its  own,  that  is  fit  for 
use,  has  to  fetch  it  from  a  great  distance ;  and 
several  cities  of  Holland,  to  this  day,  distribute  large 
quantities  of  the  precious  element,  in  vessels  spe- 
cially built  for  the  purpose.  It  is  a  strange 
sight  there,  to  see  boats  gliding  down  the  canals, 
which  intersect  the  towns  in  all  directions,  filled 
with  water,  which  is  eagerly  sought  for  by  all 
the  citizens,  although  those  who  enjoy  the  bless- 
ing of  fresh,  cool  water  would  not  be  able  to  appre- 
ciate the  insipid  beverage,  which  has  been  carried 
about  for  hours,  and  often  for  days. 

The  engraving  opposite  shows  the  different  modes 
of  carrying  water  in  different  parts  of  the  world.  It 
is  probable  that  these  types  will  soon  die  out ;  the 
best  method  of  supplying  water  being,  beyond  all 
doubt,  the  construction  of  an  immense  aqueduct, 
which,  by  means  of  pipes,  brings  to  all  the  dwell- 
ings— rich  and  poor — a  pure  and  cold  water,  in- 
stead of  a  polluted  liquid,  offered  you  in  a  leathei 
bottle,  or  heated  in  open  buckets. 


612  WATER. 


SEWERS. 


In  the  town,  as  in  the  held,  drainage  is  neces- 
sary. When  once  the  water  has  fulfilled  its  puri- 
fying mission,  when  it  has  swept  the  gutters,  given 
drink  to  the  citizens,  and  brightened  up  the  gardens, 
it  is  no  longer  pure,  it  has  been  changed — has  grown 
turbid ;  it  is  loaded  with  putrid  matter,  and  must 
be  removed  as  speedily  as  possible,  or  it  will  pro- 
duce disease  and  death. 

There  was  a  time  when  large  portions  of  England 
were  as  dreary  as  our  own  Dismal  Swamp  ;  the  in- 
habitants built  their  houses  on  rising  grounds, 
which  were  islands  when  the  waters  rose,  and  they 
scarcely  knew  what  health  was.  Ague  was  in  every 
house ;  and  almost  the  only  produce  of  these  fens 
was  water-fowl,  an  abundance  of  eels,  and  leeches 
enough  for  all  Great  Britain.  Subsequently,  millions 
of  acres  were  scientifically  drained,  and  hailed  as  a 
great  triumph  of  knowledge  and  skill.  Then  dis- 
coveries followed  each  other  rapidly.  It  was  found 
out  that  any  superabundance  of  water  is  injurious 
to  the  soil ;  its  temperature  is  fatally  lowered  by  the 
presence  of  water,  and  when  the  roots  of  plants 
lodge  in  stagnant  water  they  become  diseased,  and 
can  give  no  vigor  to  the  stem  above  ground.  The 
structure  of  the  soil  is  injured  by  the  wet,  which 
causes  it  to  crack  and  to  exclude  the  air,  which  roots 
need  as  much  as  water.  From  such  discoveries 
grew  up  the  practice  of  agricultural  drainage. 
Now  there  is  no  country  which  carries  on  agricul- 
ture  to   advantage   without  its   system  of  arterial 


THE  USES  OF  WATER.  313 

drainage,  and  every  valley  saved  from  inundatiou, 
every  river  restored  to  its  natural  course,  every 
farm  or  village  made  healthy,  is  so  much  gain, 
and  for  the  cost,  it  is  invariably  and  speedily  re- 
paid by  the  increased  value  of  land  and  houses, 
and  the  improved  security  of  produce. 

The  sewerage  of  cities  is,  at  least,  of  equal  im- 
portance. The  waste  liquids  and  the  offal  of  large 
towns  must  not  be  allowed  to  accumulate  within 
their  walls,  or  they  will  inevitably  bring  disease  and 
death.  And  yet  how  little  here,  also,  has  yet  been 
done  to  obey  this  simple  law  ! 

Paris  and  its  system  of  sewers  had  formerly  but 
three  main  outlets, — the  Seine,  which  flowed  through 
it,  and  two  natural  drains,  one  on  each  bank  of  the 
river, — the  river  Bievre,  and  the  brook  of  Menil- 
montant,  which,  after  having  followed  the  outer 
boulevards,  joined  the  Seine  at  Ohaillot.  The  first 
covered  sewer  dates  from  1343.  At  a  later  period 
Francis  I.,  being  desirous  of  freeing  his  palace  of 
Tournelles  of  the  odorous  vicinity  of  a  drain,  pro- 
posed to  move  towards  the  market  the  polluted 
stream,  the  offensive  odor  of  which  had  mounted 
to  the  royal  nostrils.  But  the  Provost  of  the  Mer- 
chants stoutly  resisted  the  will  of  his  Majesty,  and 
absolutely  refused  to  infect  the  markets  and  the 
Eue  St.  Denis,  then  inhabited,  as  he  expressed  it, 
by  "  the  flower  of  the  ancient  burghers  of  the  afore- 
said city." 

The  Provost  was  a  man  of  energetic  will,  who 
managed  to  get  the  better  of  royalty.  Francis  not 
being  able  to  prevent  tlie  unsavory  emanations  from 


314  WATER. 

spoiling  bis  court  festivals,  resolved  to  shift  his 
quarters,  and  accordingly  began  the  palace  of  the 
Tuileries. 

In  1610  Marie  de  Medicis,  feeling  anxious  lest  the 
health  of  her  subjects  should  suffer  through  the  con- 
tagious maladies  which  threatened  to  result  from 
the  stagnant,  foul  contents  of  the  sewers,  charged 
the  treasurer  of  France  with  the  duty  of  seeing  to 
their  cleaning.  But  notwithstanding  the  wise  rec- 
ommendations of  the  queen,  no  cleaning  of  the 
sewers  took  place  save  that  which  heaven  accom- 
plished by  means  of  rain,  and  the  evil  grew  greater 
and  greater  each  day.  There  was  no  water  to  drink, 
much  less  for  sweeping  the  streets  and  cleaning  out 
the  gutters,  and  the  sewers  became  choked  with  the 
offal  of  the  city. 

Towards  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  the 
great  minister,  Turgot,  caused  the  little  creek  of 
Menilmontant,  which  gave  out  the  most  disagreeable 
and  unwholesome  exhalations,  to  be  cleared  out  and 
bricked  up.  At  the  commencement  of  the  present 
century  the  sewers  were  once  more  all  cleared,  but 
the  want  of  water  prevented  such  efforts  from  being- 
effective.  In  fact  it  was  not  so  long  ago,  that  the 
subterranean  arrangements  of  Paris  were  still  a  real 
source  of  danger  to  the  pubhc  health,  a  fact  proved 
by  a  work  published  in  1824,  by  Parent  Duchalet  on 
the  subject,  stating  the  inconvenience  resulting  from 
the  then  existing  system.  The  author  distinguishes 
in  the  sewers  six  different  varieties  of  emanation 
which  are  prejudicial  to  health,  betraying  them- 
selves severally  by  their  distinct  and  noisome  odors. 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  315 

The  least  disagreeable,  which  is  peculiar  to  the  bet- 
ter kind  of  sewers,  is  a  faint  odor,  which,  though  not 
so  disgusting  as  some  of  the  others,  yet  enervates 
and  turns  the  stomach.  He  next  specifies  an  ammo- 
niacal  odor,  which  produces  ophthalmia ;  then  a  still 
more  dangerous  escape  of  sulphuretted  hydrogen, 
which  strikes  those  who  venture  too  near  with  a  sort 
of  asphyxia,  known  among  French  workmen  by  the 
name  of  plomb.  We  need  not  enter  into  particulars 
respecting  the  others,  the  putrid  odor  of  which  sug- 
gests reminiscences  of  a  dissecting  room,  the  smell  of 
soap  and  loater,  which  is  considered  the  worst  of  all, 
and  one  which  is  induced  by  the  number  of  cattle 
kept  in  the  metropolis.  We  may  leave  to  the  reader's 
imagination  the  injurious  effects  to  health  produced 
by  sewers  with  such  abominable  odors.  In  the  year 
1830  a  decided  improvement  in  the  sewerage^of  Paris 
took  place,  resulting  from  the  regular  cleaning  out  of 
the  drains  by  means  of  the  waters  of  the  Ourcq.  But 
this  incontestable  progress  was  marred  by  an  evil 
which  still  exists.  The  impure  streams  which  cross 
in  all  directions  under  the  city,  discharged  their  hor- 
rible load,  in  the  heart  of  the  town,  into  the  Seine 
itself,  where  black  torrents  pollute  the  banks  of  the 
river  and  poison  the  air  of  the  neighborhood. 

This  odious  and  uncivilized  system,  worthy  only  of 
nations  far  behind  in  the  march  of  progress,  is  at 
last  to  disappear.  The  sewers  are  in  future  to  dis- 
charge their  contents  into  a  large  reservoir,  which 
will  carry  the  drainage  water  of  Paris  down  stream, 
below  the  bridge  of  Asnieres,  after  having  passed 
in  a  tunnel  through  the  subsoil  of  Olichy. 


316  WATER. 

This  work  will  be  the  most  remaikable,  the  great- 
est and  the  latest  of  any  of  the  same  kind  which 
have  been  undertaken  by  any  nation. 

The  Cloaca  Maxima  of  ancient  Home,  which  has 
hitherto  been  considered  justly  the  masterpiece  of 
sewerage  works,  is  smaller  in  its  dimensions.  The 
form  of  the  Asnieres  drain  is  oval,  and  its  breadth 
and  height  exceed  fifteen  feet. 

In  a  few  years'  time  the  numerous  ramifications  of 
the  subterranean  hydraulic  system  of  Paris  will  all 
be  constructed  on  the  model  of  a  sewer,  which  now 
forms  a  vast  tunnel  under  the  Macadamized  road  of 
the  Boulevard  de  Sebastopol.  During  the  whole 
course  of  this  subterranean  artery  the  odor  is  so 
slight,  that  the  visitor  is  able  to  distinguish  the 
smell  which  emanates  from  a  neighboring  perfum- 
ery establishment.  An  agreeable  journey  can  be 
made  through  this  subterranean  way,  either  in  a 
boat  or  by  train,  and  the  sense  of  smell  is  nowhere 
subjected  to  very  severe  trials.  Underneath  every 
house  a  lower  court  will  be  placed  in  communi- 
cation with  the  drain,  and  the  cleaning  of  sinks 
and  cesspools  will  be  managed  underground  by 
means  of  wagons  propelled  on  iron  rails. 

These  subterranean  conduits  will  also  receive  the 
telegraph  wires,  the  water  pipes,  and  perhaps  the 
gas  pipes  of  Paris,  and  travel  will  thus  never  be 
interrupted  when  the  latter  have  to  be  introduced  or 
repaired. 

In  1853  Paris  and  the  suburbs  counted  nearly 
120  miles  of  sewers,  which,  placed  end  to  end  the 
whole    length   of  the   Lyons   railway,  would   have 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  317 

reached  the  town  of  Tonnerre.  In  a,  few  years  they 
will  form  au  immense  canal,  which,  drawn  out  in  a 
straight  line  in  the  direction  of  Berlin,  would  enable 
the  Parisians,  were  they  so  minded,  to  invade  the 
Prussian  capital  underground,  to  return  the  unpleas- 
ant visit  paid  by  the  latter  to  Paris  above  ground. 

Notwithstanding  all  these  improvements,  there  is 
much  to  be  done  yet  to  perfect  this  vast  net- 
work of  subterranean  highways.  The  impure  wa- 
ters which  circulate  in  their  bosom  do  not,  it  is 
true,  any  longer  flow  into  the  Seine  in  the  heart  of 
Paris,  but  they  poison  the  river  below  Asnieres  to 
the  very  natural  annoyance  of  those  who  live  on  its 
banks.  In  the  second  place,  the  sewage  of  the 
capital,  disagreeable  and  injurious  as  it  is  to  man, 
is  highly  beneficial  to  plants  ;  it  is  a  source  of  nour- 
ishment, nay,  of  life  for  cereals,  vegetables,  fruits, 
and  all  the  products  of  the  earth.  It  is  thus  a  mine 
of  gold,  which  now  is  thrown  into  the  sea,  and  con- 
sequently a  dead  loss  to  the  country  from  which  it 
comes. 

Let  us  hope  that  our  descendants,  carrying  to 
perfection  these  works  which  their  forefathers  com- 
menced, will  be  able  to  profit  by  this  now  neglected 
source  of  wealth — that  they  will  give  to  the  soil 
the  liquid  distilled  in  the  veins  of  our  cities  and  pay 
these  cities  back  by  the  cultivation  of  a  new  source 
of  prosperity.  It  is  well  known  that  this  has  long 
been  done  near  London  and  the  several  large  cities 
of  England,  where  the  productiveness  of  land  has 
been  increased  to  an  almost  fabulous  extent  by  the 
judicious  application  of  the  contents  of  sewers. 


CHAPTER  VIll. 


AliTESIAN   WELLS — SUBTERRANEAN   RESERVOIRS. 

"  It  appears  to  me  that  a  torsiere  (a  twist  drill)  would  easily  pierce  through 
certain  soft  stones,  and  that  by  that  means  we  might  be  able  to  reach  a  soil  of 
marl,  nay  even  water,  and  thereby  to  open  wells,  which  might  often  rise 
higher  than  the  level  where  the  point  of  the  drill  found  them.  And  this 
may  be  the  case,  provided  they  come  from  a  higher  place  than  the  hole  which 
we  have  made." — Beknabd  de  PAiiissY, 

It  is  not  merely  from  rivers  that  man  can  draw 
the  liquid  which  is  so  indispensable  to  his  social  ex- 
istence. The  ground  on  which  our  cities  stand,  coil- 
ceals  subterranean  aquatic  treasures,  which  are  ample 
enough  to  water  entire  countries  and  to  quench  the 
thirst  of  the  most  densely  populated  towns ;  but 
these  Titanic  cisterns  are  protected  by  rocky  layers, 
which  seem  to  play  the  part  of  the  dragons  of  an- 
cient fable.  What  a  persistent  warfare,  what  un- 
tiring labor  it  requires  to  obtain  these  treasures, 
which  Nature  seems  to  hide  so  jealously  from  our 
view  !  The  art  of  discovering  these  precious  liquid 
veins,  of  unveiling  these  sources  of  latent  vitality, 
has  for  a  long  period  exercised  the  fancy  of  the 
superstitious,  and  led  to  the  grossest  credulity,  hav- 
ing always  had  a  special  fascination  for  the  untaught 


THE    USES   OF  WATER.  319 

mind.  What  scores  of  mediaeval  magicians  and 
wizards  have  vainly  shaken  their  mystical  divining- 
rod  over  an  arid  and  sterile  soil,  in  the  hope  of  find- 
ing water!  How  many  a  warlock  and  enchanter 
has  implored  without  success  the  aid  of  those 
nymphs  and  genii,  who  hid  from  their  view  the 
wealth-giving  waters  of  concealed  springs !  Man- 
kind was  then  ignorant  of  the  fact  that  the  epidermis 
of  the  globe  contained  inexhaustible  sheets  of  water, 
precious  treasures  of  water-courses  everywhere.  No 
one  suspected  that  by  merely  digging  into  the  soil 
he  would  be  brought  into  contact  with  immense  res- 
ervoirs, from  whence  he  might  draw  both  riches 
and  fertility. 

Antiquity  was  fully  alive  to  the  vast  importance 
of  this  great  problem,  and  the  sacred  prophet  is  re- 
presented in  Holy  Writ  as  appearing  in  the  fullness 
of  his  power  and  majesty,  when  smiting  the  rock  to 
let  the  living  waters  gush  forth. 

For  fountains  and  springs  have,  from  time  im- 
memorial, been  cherished  and  almost  revered  by 
all  nations  of  the  earth.  In  the  vast  steppes  of  the 
East  the  few  wells  are  the  centres  around  which 
cluster  whole  tribes  of  nomads ;  in  the  desert,  the 
life  of  entire  caravans  depends  upon  their  reaching 
the  long  looked-for  well  before  they  are  utterly  ex- 
hausted. Bloody  battles  have  been  fought,  age 
after  age,  for  the  possession  of  wells,  from  the  time 
of  Jacob's  well,  near  Shechem,  to  our  own  day. 
Where  the  blessed  water  hides  in  the  ground,  grass 
springs  up,  the  palm  and  the  tamarisk  flourish,  man 
settles  down,  changes  his  tent  into  a  permanent  hut, 


320  WATER. 

and  becomes  the  founder  of  a  town  or  a  kingdoin. 
In  the  Pusztas  of  Hungary,  the  huge  crank  that 
brings  the  brimming  bucket  from  the  deep  well  is 
welcomed  with  loud  cheers  by  the  thirsty  shepherd 
and  the  weary  wanderer ;  in  every  village  and  town 
of  the  Old  World  the  public  fountain  is  the  gather- 
ing-place of  young  and  old,  who  sit  and  lean  around 
in  picturesque  groups,  and  chat  and  sing,  while  the 
restless  purling  of  the  water  enlivens  the  silent 
moonlight  night.  Persia  and  China  would  be  for- 
saken deserts  but  for  their  wells,  and  the  Sahara  of 
Africa,  as  the  wastes  of  our  Southwest,  owe  to  the 
newly  sunk  wells  the  only  life  they  possess. 

Hence,  from  time  immemorial,  also,  men  have 
ever  sought  diligently  after  the  precious  element, 
and,  where  nature  denied  them  the  living  spring, 
they  have  formed  spacious  cisterns  in  the  ground, 
or  even  excavated  rock  into  vast  basins,  to  contain 
the  waters  of  the  sky.  Such  artificial  storehouses 
of  water  are  still  in  use  in  many  a  dry  country, 
generally  little  more  than  deep  pits,  lined  with 
wood  or  stone,  and  carefully  protected  against  the 
rays  of  the  sun.  In  ancient  fortresses,  as  in  some 
of  our  own  forts  on  the  coast,  these  wells  are  made 
bomb-proof,  and  often  fed  by  the  rain  or  snow  from 
the  house-roofs,  which  is  led  into  them  by  numerous 
pipes.  In  the  Old  World  even  the  highways  offer, 
at  regular  distances,  fountains  of  fresh  water  to  the 
v^^eary  traveller  and  his  thirsty  cattle,  while  with  us 
the  large  cities  begin  to  be  adorned  with  public 
fountains,  the  gifts  of  benevolent  persons,  among 
which  one  in  Cincinnati  stands  pre-eminent,  as  its 


THE   USES   OP   WATER.  321 

water  is  artificially  cooled  in  summer  by  passing 
through  many  miles  of  pipes  packed  in  ice,  so  that 
it  never  rises  above  40°. 

But  after  all,  the  occult  sciences,  the  history  of 
pretended  miracles,  the  literature  of  legends,  all 
offer  nothing  more  imposing  than  the  spectacle  of 
Arago,  who,  after  waitmg  for  years,  with  unexam- 
pled perseverance,  for  the  realization  of  his  theo- 
ries, at  length  beheld  water  rising  in  the  well  of 
Grenelle,  bearmg  witness  at  once  to  his  genius,  and 
to  the  accuracy  of  his  predictions. 

All  the  great  masses  of  water  which  lie  upon  the 
surface  of  the  globe  meet  at  different  distances 
from  the  level  of  the  sea.  The  waters  of  some 
lakes,  like  that  of  Lake  Pavin,  in  Auvergne,  and  of 
(Eschi,  in  Switzerland,  are,  as  it  were,  suspended  at 
great  elevations,  in  natural  basins,  hollowed  out  of 
the  mountains.  The  illustration  on  the  next  page 
shows  the  relative  height  of  various  bodies  of  water, 
and  indicates  the  enormous  difference  between  their 
respective  levels.  We  may  suppose  that  these  lofty 
reservoirs  possibly  penetrate,  by  their  subterranean 
channels,  into  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  and  by  that 
means  extend  to  a  great  distance  from  the  point 
where  they  started  first.  If  there  be  an  opening  in 
the  soil,  above  the  level  of  such  subterranean  sheets 
of  water,  the  liquid,  obedient  to  the  laws  of  hydro- 
statics, will  rise  by  the  path  thus  opened  for  it,  and 
finally  reach  the  level  of  the  reservoir  whence  it 
escaped.  If  the  level  of  the  reservoir,  on  the  other 
hand,  be  above  that  of  the  soil,  in  which  the  Ar- 
tesian well  has  been  bored,  the  liquid  gushes  up  like 


322 


WATER. 


an  immense  jet,  and  its  waters  overflow  in  all  direc- 
tions. 

Artificial  water- works  are,  in  fact,  merely  varieties 
of  Artesian  wells.  Those  of  the  Tuileries,  for 
instance,  draw  their  water  from  thp  hills  of  Chaillot, 
and  rise  to  a  considerable  height,  merely  following 
the  invariable  law,  which  compels  water  to  regain 

4noo  Metres 


35oo 


3aoo 


-8.--^/ 


Irvg  or  THr  SiA 


E,YvW  ,  - 


2Soo 


2ooa 


looo 


Soo 


5oo 


Level  of  the  Lakes. 


1,  Lake  Titicaoa.  2,  Lake  Truball  in  Switzerland.  3,  Lake  Walchen.  4,  Lakb 
Constance.  5,  Lake  of  Geneva.  6,  Lake  Superior.  7,  Caspian  Sea.  8,  Lake 
of  Tiberias.     9.  The  Dead  Sea. 

the  level  of  its  source.  If  we  take  a  tube,  in  the 
shape  of  the  letter  U,  an  1  pour  water  or  any  liquid 
into  one  of  its  branches,  we  find  that  the  liquid  in 
the  other  branch  has  risen  to  a  level  exactly  equal 


THE  USES  OF  WAITER.  323 

— the  level  of  the  two  hquid  columns  being  always 
upon  exactly  the  same  horizontal  plane. 

This  simple  principle  has  always  been  regarded 
as  applicable  to  Artesian  wells.  In  1761,  Cas- 
sini  said,  speaking  of  the  fountains  of  Modena  : 
"  Possibly  these  waters  have  travelled  by  subter- 
ranean channels  from  the  heights  of  the  Apennines, 
a  distance  of  ten  miles  off." 

But  all  the  water  situated  in  the  depths  of  the 
soil  does  not  rise  thus  above  the  surface.  There 
are  certain  pools  which  remain  inactive  in  the 
earthy  crust,  and  which  are  generally  to  be  found 
at  a  slight  depth.  Woe  to  the  workmen  who  should 
stop  at  these  unwholesome  and  stagnant  sheets  of 
water  !  They  would  furnish  nothing  but  an  impure 
fluid,  incapable  of  rising  to  the  level  of  the  bore, 
and  are  often  adulterated  with  the  fetid  infil- 
trations of  cities.  But  let  them  not  lose  heart ; 
let  them  work  their  way  through  this  muddy 
water,  let  them  dig  unwearyingly ;  let  them  force 
their  way  far  down  into  the  soil,  and  they  are  sure 
to  be  rewarded  in  the  end,  by  overcoming  all  the 
obstacles  which  at  first  it  seemed  impossible  to  sur- 
mount ;  and,  having  penetrated  into  the  bowels  of 
the  earth,  they  will  reach  pure  and  transparent 
streams  which  the  sages  of  India  call  "  the  breasts 
of  the  world." 

We  need  not  be  astonished  to  meet  here  the 
names  of  the  prophets  of  Brahma ;  for  these  sages 
understood  the  art  of  digging  wells  ;  and  in  China 
there  exists  to  this  day  an  artificial  excavation  which 
is  well  nigh  as  ancient  as  the  world,  and  which  was 


324 


WATER, 


originally  made  for  the  purpose  of  finding  rock  salt. 
It  has  a  depth  of  nearly  2,000  feet.  The  Chinese, 
our  predecessors  in  so  many  valuable  and  useful 
discoveries,  have  long  understood  the  art  of  boring 
Artesian  wells, — works  which  will  certainly  attract 
the  admiration  of  those  who  refuse  to  praise  any- 
thing new,  and  reserve  all  their  enthusiasm  for  an- 
tiquities and  things  of  olden  times. 

Artesian  wells  have   been   dug  in   France    ever 
since  1126.     The  first  was  excavated  in  Artois,  and 


•-K<f>c=^ 


Artesian  Well. 


ir,  mouth  of  the  well;  a,  b,  c,  different  strata  of  the  earth's  crust  through 
which  the  well 


hence  the  name  of  that  province  has  been  bestowed 
on  these  artificial  springs.  In  the  17th  century 
Cassini  caused  an  Artesian  well  to  be  constructed 
at  Fort  Urbain,  which  threw  up  .its  water  to  a  height 
of  fifteen  feet  above  the  level  of  the  ground.  Ber- 
nard de  Palissy,  whose  vast  intellect  left  no  scien- 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  325 

tific  problem  un grappled  with,  who  may  be  looked 
upon  as  the  father  of  geology,  since  he  was  the  first 
to  recognize  that  fossils  are  neither  freaks  of  nature 
nor  the  result  of  blind  chance,  but  vestiges  of  anni- 
hilated worlds, — this  Bernard  de  Palissy  had,  as 
the  note  at  the  head  of  this  chapter  testifies,  also 
conceived  the  idea  of  the  Artesian  well. 

After  the  well  of  Artois  and  that  of  Cassini, 
other  wells  were  dug  in  other  localities,  in  which  the 
water  was  not  far  below  the  soil.  The  most  re- 
markable results  which  have  been  obtained  in 
France  have  been  at  Tours,  at  St.  Ouen,  at  Elbeuf 
and  at  Perpignan — nor  have  England  or  Germany 
been  slow  to  imitate  the  example  of  France  in 
fetching  the  precious  liquid  from  the  bowels  of  the 
earth,  while  Algeria  and  parts  of  Northern  Africa 
begin,  by  the  aid  of  Artesian  wells,  to  verify  the 
ancient  prediction  that  "  the  desert  shall  bloom  as 
the  rose." 


THE  WELL  OF  GRENELLE. 

Five  years  after  the  Eevolution  of  July,  (1830,) 
Arago  having  proved  that  the  sub-soil  of  Paris  was 
so  formed  as  to  collect  the  subterranean  waters  which 
were  gathered  here  from  all  the  surrounding  coun- 
try, and  that  nature  herself  seemed  to  have  adopted 
the  system  of  centralization  for  the  waves  also, 
which  travel  through  the  interior  of  the  earth,  in- 
duced the  municipal  council  to  provide  for  the  wel- 
fare of  the  metropolis  by  having  certain  wells  sunk. 
Sheets  of  subterranean  water  existed  beneath  the 
level  of  the  brilliant  capital — so  Arago  and  otherr 


826  WATER. 

geologists  maintained  firmly.  But  at  what  depth 
was  the  water  to  be  found  ? 

That  was  a  point  which  no  one  could  decide,  and 
the  result  of  the  diggings  afterwards  proved  that 
these  subterranean  reservoirs  were  protected  by  a 
formidable  stratum,  the  dimensions  of  which  were 
worthy  of  one  of  the  great  capitals  of  the  civilized 
world. 

It  was  soon  discovered  that  the  subterranean  mass 
of  water  having  already  been  utilized  for  the  pur- 
pose of  feeding  countless  wells  in  the  neighborhood, 
no  longer  possessed  sufficient  upward  power  to  rise 
to  the  level  of  Paris.  Arago,  noways  disconcerted 
by  this  discovery,  boldly  proposed  to  dig  below  this 
hquid  layer,  to  pierce  the  deposit  of  soil  formed  by 
the  cretaceous  ocean,  and  to  reach  the  green  sands, 
deposits  of  which  appeared  on  the  surface  of  the 
soil  in  the  neighborhood  of  Troyes.  The  ministers 
in  council  were  hesitating  and  perplexed,  but  Arago 
assured  them  of  success,  and  in  due  time  received  a 
commission  authorizing  him  to  carry  out  his  bold 
enterprise. 

On  the  7th  of  November,  1833,  the  machinery 
which  was  to  achieve  one  of  the  noblest  works  of 
excavation  which  have  ever  perhaps  been  executed, 
was  erected  at  Grenelle.  The  auger  was  first  set  in 
motion  by  a  crane  worked  by  several  men,  but  these 
were  soon  replaced  by  horses,  and  the  direction  of 
the  work  was  confided  to  M.  Mulot,  who  displayed 
through  the  whole  undertaking,  the  most  admirable 
perseverance.  What  mortifications,  what  cruel  dis- 
appointments he  had  to  endure !     But  he  had  faitlj 


THE  USES   OF  WATER.  327 

ill  his  scheme,  and,  certain  of  ultimate  success,  he 
was  able  without  presumption  to  count  on  victory. 

The  first  portion  of  the  work  was  completed  with- 
out obstacle,  but  in  undertakings  of  this  description 
it  must  be  borne  in  mind,  that  the  proverb,  "  II  riy  a 
que  le  premier  pas  qui  covte^'  has  to  be  reversed,  for 
here  the  difficulties  increase  in  proportion  as  the 
work  advances.  Many  times  during  the  progress  of 
this  long  work,  which  was  commenced  in  1833,  the 
borer  broke  and  was  lost  in  the  well.  Imagine  a 
steel  implement  so  heavy  that  it  has  to  be  set  in  mo- 
tion by  a  ram  weighing  nearly  nine  tons,  falling 
1,200  feet  to  the  bottom  of  a  hole  less  in  diam- 
eter than  a  man's  body  !  What  a  perplexity  to  the 
machinist,  who  has  not  only  lost  his  tool,  but  finds 
the  road  which  he  ought  to  open  into  the  ground 
blocked  up  by  an  enormous  mass  of  steel !  How 
is  he  ever  to  recover  through  a  dark  hole  full  of  mud 
and  full  of  water  fragments  of  iron,  firmly  fixed  in 
stone  ?  The  only  thing  to  be  done  is  to  throw  into 
this  gulf  hooks  or  spoons,  instruments  which  after 
all,  work  by  chance  only,  for  they  are  hundreds  of 
feet  away  from  the  hand  that  directs  them. 

To  appreciate  the  difficulties  fully,  we  ought  to 
hear  Arago  himself  relate  the  thousand  hindrances 
which  he  found  in  his  work,  and  the  varied  emotions 
to  which  they  gave  occasion.*  On  the  30th  of  No- 
vember, 1834,  the  screw  broke  in  seven  pieces,  and 
could  only  be  gotten  out  again  three  months  later. 
Again,  four  years  after  the  commencement  of  the 

See  Arago'8  Works.     Artesian  Wells. 


328  WATElv. 

work,  in  1837,  the  auger  fell  for  the  third  time,  a 
cable  having  snapped  off  suddenly.  This  time  the 
work  was  delayed  for  the  space  of  14  months. 
Nothing  yet  announced  that  it  was  approaching  com- 
pletion. The  funds  were  nearly  exhausted  and  still 
no  water  had  been  discovered.  Those  who  were 
hostile  to  the  undertaking,  Arago's  own  enemies  and 
almost  the  entire  press,  did  not  cease  to  heap  sar- 
casm and  ridicule  upon  the  poor  workers.  It  looked, 
indeed,  as  if  this  deplorable  accident  would  certainly 
put  an  end  to  the  whole  undertaking.  But  Arago, 
fertile  in  resources  and  possessed  of  a  persuasive  elo- 
quence, succeeded  in  reviving  the  confidence  of  those 
on  whose  aid  he  depended  for  the  carrying  out  of 
his  work,  and  in  spite  of  new  difficulties  constantly 
arising,  the  work  went  on.  Daily  they  came  nearer 
and  nearer  to  the  precious  and  longed  for  liquid. 

At  length  this  admirable  enterprise  reached  the 
wished-for  termination. 

They  had  reached  a  depth  of  1,740  feet,  when 
on  the  25th  of  February,  1841,  the  borer  brought 
up  a  green  sand  very  wet  and  clayey,  which  some- 
what revived  their  hopes.  Consequently  at  the  early 
hour  of  six  the  next  morning,  masters  and  men  were 
promptly  at  their  posts. 

The  following  day  the  borer  went  down  easily  to 
the  length  of  18  inches.  It  was  a  good  omen.  Sud- 
denly the  horses  which  were  used  in  the  work  ex- 
perienced a  violent  shock  which  shook  the  whole 
machinery,  and  then  they  turned  the  crane  without 
making  an  effort.  The  director  of  the  work  at  once 
cried    out,    "  The   auger  is   broken   and  we   have 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  329 

reached  water !"  Presently  a  sharp  whistling  sound 
was  heard  and  the  water  gushed  up  forcibly  high 
above  the  spring-work. 

Some  hours  later,  Arago,  who  was  attending  a  sit- 
ting of  the  Chambers,  received  the  following  note  : 

"  MONSIEUB  AEAGO, 

"  We  have  reached  Wiiter. 

"MULOT." 

This  was  on  the  26th  of  February,  1841,  at  32 
minutes  past  two. 

The  work  had  been  begun  on  the  4th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1833 ! 

Artesian  wells  have  since  been  dug  in  almost  every 
part  of  the  world,  some  far  surpassing  in  depth  and 
costliness  those  we  have  mentioned.  These  efforts 
are,  however,  always  slow,  difficult  and  very  expen- 
sive, and  can,  therefore,  generally  only  be  under- 
taken where  the  nature  of  the  soil  is  well  known  be- 
forehand and  a  reasonable  certainty  exists,  that  at 
a  given  depth  water  will  surely  be  reached.  More 
than  one  such  enterprise  in  this  country  also,  has 
had  to  be  abandoned  because  the  cost  exceeded  the 
possible  benefits  derived  even  in  the  most  favorable 
contingency. 


UTILIZATION  OF  THE  GENERAL  HEAT  OF  THE  GLOBE 
BY  MEANS  OF  ARTESIAN  WELLS. 

If  we  only  looked  at  the  estimates  which  have 
been  made  of  the  expense  occasioned  by  Artesian 
wells,  we  should  doubtless  find  much  subject  for  re- 
gret ;    but  if  we  study  this  great  work  from  the 


330  WATER. 

standpoints  of  experimental  science  we  are  obliged 
to  acknowledge  that  all  has  turned  out  as  well  as 
could  reasonably  be  expected,  on  this  best  of  all 
possible  worlds. 

For  many  centuries  there  has  been  no  end  of  tra- 
velleis,  who  have  traversed  the  earth  from  one  end 
to  the  other,  and  given  us  descriptions  of  lands  hith- 
erto unknown.  As  these  explorations  increase  they 
bring  us  nearer  to  the  time  when  we  shall  accu- 
rately know  the  whole  superficial  extent  of  the 
globe.  But  it  is  otherwise  with  subterranean  geo- 
graphy. What  mysteries  are  concealed  beneath  the 
terrestrial  epidermis  ?  The  depths  of  the  earth  are 
as  little  understood  as  the  depths  of  the  firmament, 
and  we  hardly  know  any  more  of  the  constitution  of 
our  own  planet  than  of  that  of  the  most  remote  star. 
And  yet  how  deeply  interesting,  as  well  as  useful, 
are  these  subterranean  explorations,  and  what  a 
grand  result  it  would  be  could  we  ever  learn  to 
utilize  the  central  heat  of  our  planet ! 

Volcanoes,  hot  springs,  and  Artesian  wells,  all 
prove  that  excessive  heat  reigns  at  a  certain  depth. 
Enormous  expenses  are  incurred  in  bringing  to  the 
surface  of  the  earth  the  coal  necessary  to  supply  us 
with  heat ;  would  it  not  be  better  to  bring  the  heat 
itself  instead  of  the  combustibles  which  produce  it  ? 
Is  there  anything  impossible  in  the  idea  of  sending 
into  the  bowels  of  the  earth  water  which  should 
come  back  boiling  to  the  surface  of  the  soil,  and 
would  supply  us  with  all  the  steam  necessary  for 
our  machinery  ?  All  things  may  be  accomplished 
by  means   of  heat.     Human  labor  is  replaced  by 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  331 

Ibat  of  a  few  ounces  of  coal.  By  means  of  fire  the 
inclemencies  of  the  seasons  and  the  inconveniencies 
of  the  climate  may  be  warded  off;  food  may  be 
prepared,  the  growth  of  vegetables  may  be  aided, 
new  varieties  may  be  raised,  and  bodies  may  be 
decomposed  and  re-composed. 

What  we  have  to  do,  therefore,  is  to  obtain  from 
the  jealous  grasp  of  the  earth  this  precious  element, 
which  it  possesses  in  such  great  abundance,  and  to 
remember  that  Prometheus,  when  he  bestowed  tire 
on  man,  gave  him  the  empire  of  the  world.  The 
earth  is  a  vast  mine  of  heat  which  ought  not  to  be 
left  unemployed.  We  are  not  here  speaking  of  the 
well  of  Maupertuis — that  famous  well  of  which 
Voltaire  writes — which  was  to  pierce  the  globe  from 
one  side  to  the  other,  in  order  that  we  might  have 
the  pleasure,  when  standing  upon  its  edge,  of  see- 
ing our  antipodes,  as  at  the  bottom  of  a  vast  tele- 
scope. We  have  only  to  pierce  to  a  depth  of  four 
leagues  at  the  most,  and  then  we  shall  have  at- 
tained a  temperature  of  boiling  water.  We  are 
merely  adding  our  weak  voice  to  that  of  Elie  de 
Beaumont,  of  Walferdin,  and  of  Babinet,  who  have 
more  than  once  invited  public  attention  to  this 
question,  without,  however,  succeeding  in  their 
efforts.  Will  this  vast  enterprise  ever  be  realized  ? 
We  cannot  tell;  nevertheless  we  cannot  but  hope 
that  one  day  another  Arago  will  accomplish  this 
task — gigantic,  if  we  compare  it  with  man's  stature, 
but  small  ii:deed,  relatively  to  the  diameter  of  our 
terrestrial  sphere.  A  great  number  of  geologists 
and    other    men    of   science   have   already  thrown 


332  WATER. 

out  the  idea  which  we  are  here  reproducing,  but 
the  day  is  perhaps  still  distant  which  will  enable 
us  to  draw  from  the  interior  of  the  earth  an  in- 
exhaustible supply  of  boiling  water  and  of  motive 
force. 

The  clearest  truths  require  to  be  often  repeated, 
in  order  to  be  understood,  and  the  wisest  schemes 
are  by  no  means  those  that  are  soonest  realized. 
Yet  we  have  abundant  experience  of  the  past,  that, 
by  dint  of  constant  asking,  we  are  pretty  sure 
finally  to  succeed  in  obtaining  what  we  need,  and 
that,  by  dint  of  steadily  pursuing  an  end,  we  reach 
it  sooner  or  later.  The  elder  Cato,  with  his  "  De- 
lenda  est  Carthago,''  is  an  example  to  the  point. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   OASIS   IN  THE   DESERT. 

"The  water  begins  to  gush.... A  bleeeed  river  has  been  forced  out  of  the 
mysterious  depths  of  the  earth." — GRNERAii  Desvaux. 

If  countries  endowed  with  rivers  and  cool  water- 
courses oiFer  to  us  the  gladdening  spectacle  of  an 
abundant  vegetation  and  a  luxuriant  nature,  full  of 
exuberant  life,  with  all  its  enjoyments,  arid  and 
dry  countries,  on  the  contrary,  present  nothing  to 
our  sight  but  endless  wastes  of  sand,  entirely  de- 
void of  verdure,  and  suggesting  no  images  save 
those  of  melancholy  and  desolation. 

But  if  in  the  midst  of  these  burning  deserts,  dried 
up  as  they  are  by  the  rays  of  the  sun,  water  comes 
bursting  from  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  these  sands 
no  longer  remain  sterile,  but  impart  life  to  plants, 
which  rapidly  grow  up  beneath  the  influence  of  a 
beneficent  moisture,  and  that  desert-land  is  speedily 
covered  with  a  verdure  which,  spreading  its  do- 
minions daily,  further  and  further,  finally  supports 
numbers  of  animals,  who  will  make  it  their  abode. 
This  dying,  barren,  and  desolate  landscape  is 
changed  into  a  rich  and  animated  scene,  full  of  life, 
and   smiling  with  the   charms  of  a  perennial  and 


334  WATER. 

generous  vegetation.  Flowers,  fruits,  and  seeds  will 
be  infinitely  multiplied,  and  laughing  meadows  and 
rich  pastures  will  take  the  place  of  uncultivated 
deserts  and  arid  plains — of  these  tracts,  which  na- 
ture seemed  to  have  abandoned,  since  she  had  for- 
gotten to  fertilize  their  soil  by  a  suigle  stream. 

To  give  life  to  the  deserts,  to  break,  by  the  beauty 
of  turf  and  foliage,  the  melancholy  monotony  of 
naked  soil,  to  people  with  life  these  mournful  and 
silent  sands, — this  is  the  work  which  can  be  effected 
by  means  of  Artesian  wells. 

The  vast  desert  of  the  Sahara  has  not  always 
been  a  plain  of  sand,  and  the  numerous  remnants  of 
moUusks,  which  are  to  be  met  with  there,  teach  us 
plainly  that  its  site  was  once  covered  by  the  sea. 
On  some  of  its  hills  we  can  even  discern  traces  of 
the  action  of  the  waves,  and  the  sand  is  usually  im- 
pregnated with  salt.  Here  and  there,  indeed,  salt 
lakes  still  spread  forth  their  waters,  like  the  last 
drops  which  adhere  to  the  bottom  of  a  vessel  which 
has  been  emptied. 

It  is  possible  that  the  ocean,  which  formerly 
covered  the  desert,  dried  up  slowly,  and,  probably 
rose  gradually,  drop  by  drop,  in  the  form  of  vapor. 
Rain  is  very  rare  in  these  burning  zones ;  the  few 
mountains  found  there  are  but  seldom  covered  with 
a  diadem  of  snow,  and  the  skies  refuse  to  these  re- 
gions the  water  of  which  they  are  so  prodigal  in 
other  countries.  The  water  distilled  by  the  sun  is 
never  replaced,  and  thus,  in  time,  this  great  inland 
sea  was  dried  up.  A  sea  of  sand  replaced  the  liquid 
ocean,  and  the   eye  of  the  traveller  who   crosses 


THE   USES   OF   WATER.  335 

these  deserts  reaches  a  distant  horizon  without  per- 
ceiving aught  but  an  infinitely  prolonged  plain — a 
vast  sheet,  of  a  yellowish  hue,  without  boundary  and 
without  limit. 

But  beneath  the  sand  of  this  desert  lies  a  sheet  of 
water  which  man  can  utilize ;  and,  for  many  years, 
modes  for  digging  Artesian  wells  have  been  known 
to  the  native  tribes  who  inhabit  the  borders  of  the 
Sahara.  Tools  of  the  rudest  character  suffice  them  ; 
armed  with  the  most  indomitable  patience,  they 
slowly  dig  into  the  ground,  little  by  little,  till  they 
make  their  way  deeper,  scooping  away  and  throw- 
ing upon  the  edge  of  the  hole  the  soil  they  dig  out, 
and,  thanks  to  their  marvellous  perseverance,  they 
often  reach  a  depth  of  100  or  200  fathoms.  After 
having  successi^  ely  pierced  layers  of  sand,  gravel, 
and  clay,  they  attain  a  schistous  crust,  not  unlike 
slate.  This  last  envelope  covers  the  precious  liquid, 
— the  Bahr-el-Tahani  {sea  heloiv  tJie  earth):  they  have 
only  to  dig  through  one  layer  more — the  last  effort 
of  these  indefatigable  workers — and  the  water 
bursts  forth  with  such  upward  force,  that  the  dig- 
gers, taken  by  surprise  at  the  last  moment,  some- 
times lose  their  lives  in  their  final  effort. 

But  if  they  frequently  risk  their  lives,  they  have 
the  consolation  of  seeing  themselves  the  objects  of 
absolute  veneration  on  the  part  of  their  countrymen. 
They  form  a  corporation  known  under  the  name  of 
the  "  R'tass,"  and  the  severest  labor  is  for  them  the 
object  of  a  noble  ambition.  They  are  deterred  by 
no  obstacle,  and  the  work  which  is  commenced  in 
ground  perfectly  dry,  frequently  has  to  be  done  in 


336  WATER. 

the  end  under  the  pressure  of  a  column  of  water  180 
feet  in  thickness,  due  to  the  waters  of  infiltration 
which  it  is  impossible  to  avoid. 

If  we  picture  to  ourselves  these  unhappy  natives 
compelled  to  plunge  into  the  liquid  and  remain  in  it 
four  or  five  minutes,  to  labor  in  muddy  water  and  to 
bring  up  the  few  handfuls  of  sand  which  they  have 
extracted,  hoisting  themselves  up  by  means  of  a 
rope,  we  are  struck  with  admiration  for  a  persever- 
ance so  indomitable  and  so  marvellous  in  a  trying 
climate. 

When  their  task  is  rendered  difficult  in  this  man- 
ner, they  are  unable  to  accomplish  in  one  day 
more  thg-n  two  or  three  descents,  and  hence  the 
work  proceeds  with  discouraging  slowness.  The 
work  of  several  years  is  often  not  sufficient  to  en- 
able them  to  reach  the  wished-for  goal,  and  to  snatch 
from  the  sand  of  the  desert  the  water  with  which  it 
seems  loth  to  part. 

"  Sometimes,"  says  Mr.  Charles  Laurent,  "  it  hap- 
pens that  a  well-digger  is  suffocated,  either  before 
he  reaches  the  bottom  or  during  his  work,  or  whilst  ■ 
he  is  reascending  to  the  light  of  day.  One  of  his 
companions,  who  holds  alternately  the  cord  which 
serves  at  the  same  time  for  direction  and  for  signal, 
being  warned  by  its  shaking  that  his  companion  is 
in  danger,  hastens  to  his  assistance,  whilst  another 
replaces  him  at  his  post  of  observation,  which  he  in 
turn  has  to  quit  at  a  new  signal  calling  him  down  to 
rescue  both  of  his  comrades." 

Very  different,  indeed,  is  this  rude  and  elementary 
process  from  the  scientific  method  of  digging  wells ; 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  337 

different,  indeed,  these  handfuls  of  sand  extracted 
with  so  much  difficulty  from  the  masses  of  rock, 
which  occasionally  break  our  most  formidable  drills 
and  require  strong  steel  spoons  for  the  recovery 
of  the  mere  fragments.  Nothing  can  resist  our  pow- 
erful implements,  whereas  a  somewhat  harder  layer 
of  stone  is  to  the  native  engineers  an  insurmount- 
able barrier. 

The  well  once  dug,  the  walls  are  strengthened  by 
a  few  planks  to  prevent  their  falling  in,  notwith- 
standing which  precaution  these  wells  are  not  long 
lived,  being  quite  ephemeral  in  their  nature.  In  a 
very  short  time  the  moist  soil  caves  in,  and  the  bles- 
sed spring  is  closed  up  forever,  its  opening  having 
become  obstructed.  Near  the  fountain  a  husband- 
man has  been  enabled  to  live,  finding  there  the  sub- 
sistence needful  for  his  existence ;  a  few  palm  trees 
having  protected  by  their  foliage  the  first  growths 
of  the  desert.  But  the  well  is  choked  up,  the  oasis 
is  destroyed.  The  burning  wind  of  the  desert  will 
soon  destroy  these  scant  traces  of  human  industry, 
and  verdure  and  cultivation  once  more  disappear. 
The  sand  will  cover  with  a  thick  mantle  these  re- 
mains and  ruins  which  are  the  only  evidence  now  of 
marvellous  persevering  efforts. 

Two  French  engineers,  Messrs.  Fournel  and  Du- 
bocq,  were  the  first  who  determined  upon  substitut- 
ing our  methods  of  boring  for  the  simple  and  prim- 
itive process  of  the  Arabs.  General  Desvaux  gave 
them  a  cordial  and  powerful  support.  "  Chance,  ' 
says  this  officer  in  a  report  addressed  to  the  governor 
of   Africa,  "led  me  to  the  summit  of  a  sand-hill, 


338  WATER. 

which  overlooks  the  entire  oasis.  It  would  be  to- 
tally impossible  for  me  to  describe  to  you  the  im- 
pression made  upon  me  by  the  sight  of  this  oasis. 
On  my  right  were  verdant  palm  trees,  cultivated 
•gardens,  in  a  word,  life ;  while  on  my  left  were  ster- 
ility, desolation,  death.  I  sent  for  the  Sheik  and  the 
inhabitants,  and  was  informed  by  them  that  the 
reason  of  this  difference  consisted  in  the  northern 
well  being  choked  up  by  sand,  while  waste  waters 
prevented  their  digging  new  wells.  In  a  few  days 
the  whole  population  was  to  scatter,  forsaking  their 
houses  and  the  graveyards  where  their  fathers  slept. 
I  saw  in  a  moment  what  valuable  results  would  ac- 
crue to  this  country  from  Artesian  wells,  and  thanks 
to  you,  w)io  have  so  kindly  received  and  encouraged 
my  suggestions,  life  will  be  restored  to  many  of  the 
oases  of  the  Oued-Rir,  and  the  future  is  pregnant 
with  hopes  of  a  most  cheering  character." 

In  1855  Mr.  Charles  Laurent  was  directed  to  ex- 
plore the  land  for  the  purpose  of  studying  Artesian 
borings,  and  it  was  not  long  before  an  expedition 
for  boring  was  equipped.  M.  Jus,  a  civil  engineer, 
took  charge  of  the  works  for  the  well  at  Philippe- 
ville.  The  implements  which  this  work  required, 
were  under  great  difficulties  transported  to  the  Oasis 
of  Tamerna,  but  at  length  everything  was  in  train, 
and  on  the  first  of  May,  the  first  blow  was  struck 
upon  the  soil  of  the  Sahara.  Five  weeks  later 
they  had  reached  a  depth  of  60  metres,  when 
suddenly  a  terrible  noise  was  heard  and  an  immense 
torrent  burst  forth  from  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  a 


THE   USES    OF   WATER.  339 

torrent  so  abundant  as  to  furnish  3,500  quarts  per 
second — 1,050  more  than  is  discharged  by  the  well 
of  G-renelle ! 

The  workmen  thus  received  an  ample  reward  for 
their  labors,  which  for  more  than  a  month  had  never 
been  suspended,  in  spite  of  the  rays  of  the  sun, 
which  raised  the  mercury  to  a  temperature  of  115° 
"n  the  shade. 

The  inhabitants  of  Tamerna  and  its  neighborhood 
were  immediately  informed  of  the  good  news,  and 
rushed  in  a  body  to  the  spot.  Every  one  wished  to 
be  present  at  the  miracle  and  to  see  with  his  own 
eyes  this  water  which  the  French  had  been  able  to 
obtain  in  five  weeks,  while  the  natives  would  have 
worked  as  many  years  and  with  five  times  as  many 
laborers.  Women  and  children  of  all  ages  rushed 
towards  the  gushing  spring  and  drank  of  it  out  of 
the  canteens  of  our  soldiers.  With  frantic  delight 
they  embraced  one  another,  and  cries  of  joy  broke 
the  silence  of  the  sandy  desert. 

They  did  not  stop  after  this  happy  beginning. 
This  first  well  set  a  good  example,  and  in  a  short 
time  five  others  were  sunk  in  the  desert.  The  Sa- 
hara became  enriched  with  a  tribute  of  over  20,000 
gallons  per  minute,  a  quantity  equivalent  to  the  cur- 
rent of  a  small  river. 

At  Badna,  at  Biskara,  at  Ourlana,  new  Artesian 
fountains  were  dug,  and  at  the  present  time  Eastern 
Sahara  is  fertilized  by  copious  springs,  which  pour 
upon  the  arid  soil  over  300,000  cubic  feet  of  water 
every  24  hours. 


340  WATER. 

Heijceforward,  man  and  civilization  will  bo  en- 
abled to  invade  these  immense  sandy  plains — these 
vast  deserts,  which  arrest  the  progress  of  life  in 
parts  of  some  of  the  continents — and  the  human 
family  will  spread,  thanks  to  Artesian  wells,  over  re- 
gions which  have  been  hitherto  held  accursed,  but 
which  now  will  be  transformed  into  vast  oases. 
The  agency  of  water  will  everywhere  change  the 
appearance  of  the  hitherto  bare  soil,  and,  being  ju- 
diciously distributed  through  irrigating  canals,  it 
will  fertilize  the  ground  that  has  so  long  been  lying 
barren. 

During  the  last  ten  years  550,000  palm  trees  have 
sprang  up  on  the  soil  of  the  Sahara,  rendered  fertile 
by  Artesian  wells  ;  and  these  generous  trees,  by  the 
shade  they  impart,  daily  improve  the  soil,  sheltering 
it  from  the  piercing  rays  of  the  burning  sun. 

Day  by  day  the  branches  grow  larger  and  spread 
further,  and,  in  proportion  as  they  do  so,  cultivation 
of  the  ground  beneath  their  shadow  becomes  easier. 
Certain  parts  of  Algeria,  which  formerly  suffered 
from  the  effects  of  the  simoom,  and  the  silicious  soil 
of  which  was  uniformly  covered  with  utterly  sterile 
sand,  are  now  overspread  by  a  soft  envelope  of  fer- 
tile earth,  on  which  apricot  trees  grow,  and  from 
which,  even  in  winter,  crops  of  barley  and  other 
grains  can  be  raised. 

Too  much  praise  cannot  be  bestowed  on  these 
Qoble  undertakings,  which  have  been  crowned  with 
such  encouraging  success,  and  the  sinking  of  these 
wells  in  the  desert  may  be  considered  as  oiie  of  the 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  841 

few  lasting  and  glorious  results  of  the  French  inva- 
sion of  Algeria  ;  for  this  is  a  purely  pacific  victory, 
a  hundred  times  preferable  to  those  which  are  won 
at  the  price  of  blood.  May  these  works  inaugurate 
a  new  era,  in  which  the  reign  of  the  sword  shall 
give  place  to  battles  which  are  waged  solely  bj  in- 
dustry and  agriculture. 

The  happy  results  thus  obtained  in  Algeria  led 
the  enterprising  Khedive  of  Egypt  to  order  similar 
efforts  to  be  made  in  favorable  parts  of  his  kingdom, 
and  many  a  long-abandoned  district,  once  equal  to 
the  famous  land  of  Goshen,  has  once  more  bloomed 
forth  and  produced  rich  crops,  to  the  infinite  relief 
of  the  poor  Fellahs.  But  it  is  not  only  the  imme- 
diate profit  which  rewarded  the  wise  policy  of  the 
Viceroy,  but  the  hope  of  thus  being  able  to  oppose 
a  powerful  barrier  to  the  daily  encroachments  of  the 
desert,  which,  without  such  energetic  means  of  re- 
sistance, threatens  to  overwhelm,  inch  by  inch,  all 
the  fertile  Ian  is  of  the  Nile. 

We  might  prolong,  ad  infinitum,  our  enumeration 
of  the  services  rendered  by  water  to  man,  to  science, 
and  to  industry,  and  we  should  never  finish,  if  we 
had  to  speak  in  detail  of  the  multiform  uses  to 
which  the  precious  liquid  may  be  apphed.  Steam, 
the  great  motive  power,  animates  those  engines 
which  are  indispensable  now  to  axerj  branch  of  in- 
dustry— steam  carries  the  locomotive  along  the  iron 
rail ;  steam  drives  those  enormous  vessels  through 
the  ocean,  which  beat  the  waves  with  their  colossal 
wheels  as  with  the  fins  of  some  formidable  marine 
monster.      Thanks  to  steam,  industrious  England 


342  •  WAITER. 

has  multiplied  ber  forces  tenfold,  so  that  the  work 
she  now  accomplishes  annually  by  the  aid  of  steam, 
is  equivalent  to  that  which  would  be  produced  by 
400,000,000  men ! 

As  a  liquid,  water  turns  the  miD  wheel  and  grinds 
our  corn.  Rivers  and  canals  also  assist  in  effecting 
communication  between  provinces  and  countries. 
These  ''  moving  highways  "  form  the  basis  of  com- 
merce and  of  the  intercourse  between  nation  and 
nation.  Mr.  de  Lesseps,  in  cutting  the  canal  across 
the  isthmus  of  Suez,  opens  to  Europe  a  highroad  to 
India,  and  thus  uniting  the  seas  which  by  their  union 
give  to  civilization  a  new  impulse,  he  may  be  consid- 
ered a  worthy  representative  of  modern  science. 

But  all  these  questions,  interesting  as  they  are, 
must  be  passed  over  in  silence,  lest  our  picture  ex- 
ceed the  prescribed  limits  of  its  frame. 

Our  little  book  is  not,  properly  speaking,  a  scien- 
tific work,  and  we  have  only  endeavored  to  explain 
a  few  important  facts  in  the  history  of  one  of  the 
most  important  bodies  in  nature  ;  we  have  simply 
endeavored  to  sketch  the  part  which  it  plays  in  the 
harmony  of  the  world,  the  importance  of  studying 
it,  and  the  advantage  of  its  employment  in  industry 
and  hygiene. 

Our  aim  will  be  accomplished  if  the  reader  has 
without  too  much  fatigue,  turned  the  pages  of  this 
little  volume,  and  our  utmost  hopes  are  fulfilled  if 
we  have  been  able  to  inspire  him  for  one  instant 
with  admiration  for  some  of  the  beautiful  phenom- 
ena of  nature,  and  a  few  of  the  leading  conquests 
of  science. 


THE   USES   OF  WATER.  343 

Jean  Jacques  Bousseau  pretended  that  be  consid- 
ered science  to  have  the  effect  of  rendering  man 
guilty  and  miserable,  and  avowed  his  preference  for 
the  ignorant  man  who  led  a  peaceful  life,  uncon- 
cerned about  what  surrounded  him,  over  the  scien- 
tific man  who  interrogated  nature.  He  forgot  that 
it  was  not  in  man's  own  power  to  resist  the  noble 
aspirations  which  are  the  prime  motives  of  his  life, 
the  desire  of  knowledge  which  urges  him  on,  the  in- 
satiable craving  which  will  not  suffer  him  to  be  at 
rest. 

Wherever  the  waves  of  the  sea  strike  the  shore, 
the  sense  of  a  free  and  powerful  Nature  takes  hold 
of  us.  At  the  sight  of  these  waves,  filled  with  a 
world  of  life,  of  those  seaweeds  and  fuci  which  fur- 
row the  ocean  with  a  thousand  verdant  lines,  we 
feel  convinced  by  mysterious  intuition,  that  every 
thing  in  the  universe  obeys  eternal  and  immutable 
laws.  Whenever  our  eyes  gaze  upon  the  face  of 
Nature,  our  mind  abandons  itself  to  sweet  reveries, 
and  yielding  to  the  gentle  impulse  of  the  thoughts 
that  stir  within  us,  aspires  to  penetrate  into  the 
sphere  of  the  ideal. 

The  ignorant  man  may,  indeed,  enjoy  the  physical 
pleasures  of  material  life,  but  it  is  not  his  to  enjoy  the 
boundless  happiness  which  Nature  reserves  for  him 
who  comprehends  her  secrets,  and  to  taste  the  inef- 
fable joy  of  the  seeker  after  truth,  who  succeeds  in 
adding  a  few  lines  to  the  great  volume  of  human 
knowledge. 

Science  is  an  inexhaustible  spring,  and  all  men  may 
slake  their  thirst  there  ;  all  may  reap  ample  harvestt 


344  WATER. 

in  her  domain ;  in  this  spiritual  realm  there  will 
never  be  a  lack  either  of  fields  to  reap  or  of  con- 
quests to  gain,  and  the  victories  of  the  intellect 
can  never  be  confined  to  the  narrow  limits  of  a 
world. 


APPENDIX. 


Analyses  of  tlie   Waters  of  the  Principal  Mineral 
Springs  of  the  United  States. 

ANALYSIS    OF   CONGRESS    SPRING,   SARATOGA, 

A  pint  of  water  contains  :  Grains. 

Chloride  of  sodium, r . .  54. 30 

Hydriodate  of  soda, Trace. 

Carbonate  of  soda, 2.00 

Bi-carboiiate  of  soda, Trace. 

Carbonate  of  magnesia, 4.00 

Bi-carbouate  of  magnesia, Trace. 

Carbonate  of  lime, 18.00 

Carbonate  of  iron, Trace. 

Silica, Trace . 

Hydrobromate  of  potassa, Trace. 

78.30 
Db.  Lewis  C.  Becil,  Mineralogy  of  New  York 


AKAIiYSIS    OF   SHARON    SPRINGS,    SCOHABIE    CO.,    N.   Y. 

k  pint  of  water  ooutains  :  Grains.. 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 2.65 

Sulphate  of  lime, 6.98 

Chloride  of  sodium, 0.14 

Chloride  of  magnesia, 0. 15 

Hydrosulphuret  of  sodium,    i  q  j^ 


Hydrosulphuret  of  calcium, 


10.06 
Dr.  J.  R.  Chilton,  New  York. 


346  APPENDIX. 


ANALYSIS   or   MAGNESIA   SPUING,    AT   SHAE«N. 

A  gallon  of  water  contains  :  Graiua. 

Bi-carbonate  of  magnesia, 30,5 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 22. 7 

Sulphate  of  lime, 76.0 

Hydrosulphates  of  magnesia  and  Jimo 0.5 

Chloride  of  sodium  aiui  magnesium 3.0 

132.7 
Pbof.  Lawrence  Reed,  New  York. 


ANALYSIS   op  AVON   NEW   SPMNG,  LIVINGSTON   CO.,  N.  " 

A  pint  of  water  contains  :  Grains. 

Carbonate  of  lime, 3. 37 

Sulphate  of  lime, O.M 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 1.01 

Sulphate  of  soda, ; 4.84 

Chloride  of  sodium, 0.71 

10.37 


ANALYSIS   OF   ROCKBKIDGE   ALUM    SPRING,   ROCKBRIDGE   CO.,   VA. 

A  gallon  of  water  contains  :  Grains. 

Sulphate  of  potash, 1. 755 

Sulphate  of  lime, 3.263 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 1. 663 

Sulphate  of  protoxide  of  iron, 4.863 

Alumina, 47.905 

Crenate  of  ammonia, 0. 700 

Chloride  of  sodium, 1. 008 

Silicic  acid, 2.840 

Free  sulphuric  acid, 15.224 

Carbonic  acid, 7.536 

56.876 
Dr.  Hayes,  of  New  York. 


APPENDIX.  347 


ANALYSIS   OF    Ki5L)    SUUPHUR   SPRINGS,   MOXKOB    CO.,   YA. 

50,000  grains  of  water  coutaiu  :  Grains. 

•     Silicious  and  other  earthy  matter, ....  6.70 

Sulphate  of  soda, 3.55 

Sulphate  of  lime, 0.47 

Carbonate  of  lime, 4.50 

Carbonate  of  magnesia, 4.13 

Sulphur  compound, 7.20 

Carbonic  acid, 2.71 

23.26 
Of  dissolved  gases  the  same  quantity  contains  : 

Carbonic  acid, 1.245 

Nitrogen, 1.497 

Oxygen, 260 

Uydrosulphurlc  ac'd, 086 

:1088 
Db.  Hayes,  of  New  York. 


kSAL.YSIB  or  BLUE  SULPHUR  SPRINGS,  GREENBRIER  CO. ,    WEST  VA 

100  cubic  inches  contains  :  Grains. 

Sulphate  of  lime,    20.152 

Sulphate  of  magnesia 2.760 

Sulphate  of  soda, 9.021 

Carbonate  of  lime, 2.185 

Carbonate  of  magnesia,  0.481 

Chloride  of  magnesium, .  0.407 

Chloride  of  sodium, 1.868 

Chloride  of  calcium, 0.005 

Peroxide  oi'  iron, 0.075 

Nitrogenized  organic  matter, 3.000 

Earthy  phosphates, Trace. 

Gases  in  a  free  state.  Cubic  inches. 

Sulphuretted  hydrogen, 0. 45 

Nitrogen, 3. 25 

Oxygen, 0.5U 

Carbonic  o^Jd, 2. 75 

Dr.  W.  B.  Kogers,  of  Boston,  Mass 


348  APPENDIX. 


ANALYSIS   OF   HARBODSBUEG   (GBBBNVILLE)    SPEINO,   KI. 

A  pint  of  water  contains  :  Grains. 

Bi-carbonate  of  magnesia, 2.87 

Bi-carbonate  of  lime, 0.86 

Sulphate  of  magnesia  (crystallized) 16.16 

Sulphate  of  lime  (crystallized) 11.06 

Chloride  of  sodium, Trace. 

30.95 


tNALYSlS   OP  SALOON    (CHALYBEATE)    SPRING,   HABEODSBURG,  KY. 

A  pint  of  water  contains  :  Grains. 

Bi-carbonate  of  magnesia,    0.43 

Bi-carbonate  of  lime, 4.31 

Bi-carboijate  of  iron, 0. 50 

Sulphate  of  magnesia  (crystallized), 27.92 

Sulphate  of  lime  (crystallized), 20.24 

Chloride  of  sodium, 1.24 

44.60 
Dk.  C.  H.  Raymond,  of  Cincinnati,  0. 


ANALYSIS   or    BLUE   LICKS    SPRING,   KY. 

1.000  j,'raiu8  of  water  contain  :  Grains, 

Carbonate  of  lime, .       0.3850000 

Carbonate  of  magnesia, 0.0022065 

Alumina,  phosphate  of  lime,  and  ox. 

iron,    0.0058330 

Chloride  of  sodium, 8-.  3472930 

Chloride  of  potassium, 0.0226690 

Chloride  of  magnesium, 0.5272000 

Bromide  of  magnesium, 0. 0009394 

Iodide  of  magnesium, 0.0007340 

Sulphate  of  lime, 0.5533300 

Sulphate  of  potash, 0.1519190 

Sibcic  acid, 0.2819861 

Professor  Peteb,  of  Louisville,  Ky. 


APPENDIX  349 


ANALYSIS  OV  WABM  SPBINGS,  BUNCOMBE   GO.,  N.  a 

rhree  quarts  of  water  contain  :  Grains. 

Muriates  of  lime  and  magnesia, 4.0 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 6.0 

Sulphate  of  lime, 14.5 

Insoluble  residue, 2.5 

Pbofbssob  E.  D.  Smith,  SUliman's  Journal. 
I 


ANALYSIS   OF  BEEB  SPEINO,  OKEGON. 

One  quart  of  water  coutaine  Orains. 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 12. 10 

Sulphate  of  lime, 2.12 

Carbonate  of  lime, 3.86 

Carbonate  of  magneuiu, 3.22 

Chloride  of  calcium, 1.33 

Chloride  of  magnes'.v.'i  .           1.12 

Chloride  of  sodium, 2.24 

Vegetable  extractive  matter, 0.85 

26.84 
Genebal  Fremont's  Official,  Kepobt. 


ANALYSIS  of  BEDFOBD  (ANDEBSON's)  SPBINQ,  BEDFOBD  CO.,  PA. 

One  quart  of  water  contains  :  Qralns. 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 20 

Sulphate  of  lime, 3| 

Muriate  of  soda, 2J^ 

Muriate  of  lime, I 

Carbonate  of  iron, l-i 

Carbonate  of  lime, v  2 

304 
L>t.  Church,  of  Bedford  Springs. 


350  APPENDIX. 


iLNALYSiS  OF  WHITE  SULPHUIC  SPRINGS,   GKEKNBIUEK  CO.,  W.   V* 

100  cubic  iuchi'8  of  watei*  coutaiu  :  Grains. 

Sulphate  of  lime, 31 .680 

Sulphate  of  magnesia, 8. 241 

Sulphate  of  soda, 4.000 

Carbouate  of  lime, 1.530 

Carbonate  of  magnesia, 0.566 

Chloride  of  magnehiiini, 0.071 

Chloride  of  calcium,    0.010 

Chloride  of  sodium, 0.226 

Protosulphate  of  iron 0.069 

Sulphate  of  alumina, 0.012 

Earthy  phosphates, Trace. 

Nitrogenized  organic  matter, ,  5.000 

Db.  W.  Ij.  Rooej'.s,  of  Boston^  Mass. 


THE   END 


FROM  A  LEADING  MASSACHUSETTS  TEACHER. 
*'  They  should  be  put  into  every  school  library  in  the  country.  In  the  loiver  schools 
ikey  will  serve  to  awaken  an  interest  in  the  natural  sciences^  which  will  prove  a  potent 
ttimulus  to  their  thorough  study  whentheyare  taken  up  in  a  more  advanced  grade  :  whin 
to  those  who  are  already  engaged  in  the  study  they  will  furnish  a  rich  variety  of  illustra- 
tive matter  which  could  not  be  brought  within  the  limits  of  a  school  text-book,  but  which 
forms  a  most  valuable  supplement  to  the  text-book.'''' 

THE     ILLUSTRATED 

LIBRARY  OF  WONDERS. 

THE  WONDERS  OF  MAN  AND  NATURE, 

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THE  IV0NT>ERS  OF  SCIENCE, 

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that  they  have  now  completed  the  new  edition  of  The  Won- 
der Library,  the  success  of  which  has  been  most  extraor  bi- 
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The  series  is  designed  to  bring  within  popular  comprehension 
the  various  operaiions  and  procedures  in  Science  and  the  Arts, 
the  phenomena  and  laws  of  nature,  curious  and  strikirg  facts 
in  natural  history,  remarkable  exploits,  archaeological  discov- 
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The  subj  cts  treated  are  of  universal  interest,  and  they  are 
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duced. 


ILLUSTRATED  LIBRARY  OF  WONDERS, 

From  the  Boston  Globe, 
'"''For  young  and  old  the  series,  in  authority,  sound  in/ormation,  nnd 
fcpular  tHteresi  and  use/ulness,  is  undoubtedly  the  best  ever  published^ 


THE  IVONDERS  OF  MAN  AND  NATURE 

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Intelligence  of  Animals,  with  illustrative  Anecdotes.     From  the  French  of 
Ernkst  Menaut.     With  54  illustrations. 

"The  reading  of  such  a  book  will  both  instruct  and  interest  young  students,  and  we 
might  add  almost  equally  so  those  who  are  more  advanced  in  years.  It  is  a  wise  thing  for 
both  parents  and  teachers  to  impress  upon  young  learners  just  such  facts  as  here  narrated.  It 
beyets  a  feeling  of  interest  in  dumb  animals,  and  adds  new  interest  to  all  their  movements." 

Chicago  Inter  Ocean. 

Mountain  tAdventureS  in  Various  Parts  of  the  World      Se'ected  from  the 
narratives  of  celebrated  travellers.      With  an  introduction  and  additions 
by  Hon.  J.  T.   Headley.     With  41  illustrations. 
"J.  T.  Headley's  selections  from  the  narratives  ihat  celebrated  travellers  have  written  of 

their  moimtain  adventures  in  various  parts  of  the  world." — Boston  Advertiser. 

'Bodily  Strength  and  Skill  in  all  zAges  and  Countries,    r.y  guil- 

LAUMK  Dkpping.     Translated  by  Charles  Russell.    With  70  illustrations. 
''To  modern  lovers  of  athletic  sports  the  compilation  is  highly  useful  and  instructive.     It 
has  seventy  spirited  illustrations." — Journal  of  Cofninerce. 

Wonderful    Escapes,     Revised  from  the  French  of  F.  Bernard,  and  orig- 
inal "chapter  by  Richard  Whiting. 

"It  consists  of  an  account  of  the  most  extraordinary  escapes  from  captivity,  from  the  time 
ot  classic  antiquity  down  to  the  present  era.  Among  the  stories  will  be  found  those  of  Bene- 
venuto  Cellini,  Grotius,  Baron  Trenck,  Cassandova,  La  Valette,  Louis  Napoleon,  and  James 
Stephens.  They  are  largely  autobiographical  and  afford  a  large  fund  of  exciting  and  mterest- 
\\\Z'^^'3.A\n%'''— Boston  Gazette. 

Thunder  and  Lightning.     By  W.  DeFonvielle.     Translated  and  edited 
by  T.   L.  rhipson,   Ph.D.     With  39  large  illustrations. 

•'A  baok  which,  from  the  nature  of  the  subject,  as  well  as  from  the  skillful  and  common-sense 
mode  of  treatment,  well  deserves  to  be  re-issued.  In  spite  of  the  progress  of  science  it  well 
stands  the  test  of  time,  and  few  books  of  the  kind  better  repay  perusal.  It  is  one  of  those  in 
which  one  learns  that  fact  is  stranger  than  ficiion.  The  marvellou-.  plays  an  important  part  in 
i.s  pages."—  The  Star. 

Adventures  on  the  Great  Hunting  Grounds  of  the  World.    By  Vic- 
tor Meunikr.     With  22  illustrations. 

"Here  are  remarkable  facts  and  stories  about  the  hunting  of  the  gorilla,  the  tiger,  the  lion, 
the,hippopotamus,  the  elephant,  and  other  fierce  and  mighty  creatures,  well  told  and  well  illus- 
trated."— Philadelphia  Evening  Bulletin. 

Wonders  of  the  Human  'Body.     From  the  French    of   a.   I.e  Ph.eur, 
Doctor  of  M  dicine.     With  45  illustrations  by  Leveille. 

The  Sublime  in   Nature.     From  descriptions  of  Celebrated  Travelers  and 
Writers.  By  FERDINAND  DE  Lanoyk.   With  44  illustrations.    i2mo.   $l.oo» 


LLUSTRATED  LIBRARY  OF  WONDERS 

From  the  Christian  Advocate. 
"These  donki  m.iy  de  bouoht  with  the  certainty  that  they  will  give 
unbounded  pleasure  of  a  good  kind  to   the  well-grown  children  of  a 
family  y  and  that  the  matur-^.  will  pick  them  up  as  eagerly  as  those  who 
are  younger.^'' 


THE    IVONDERS    OF    SCIENCE 

Sold  Separately  at  $1.00  per  Volume. 
TJie  Set,  8  Volumes  in  a  Box,  $8.00. 


Heat,  Its  Phenomena  and  Laws.  By  Ach[LLE  Cazin.  Translated  and 
edited  by  Elihu  Kiel.  With  a  new  chapter  on  "Recent  Im  rovements  in 
the  Application  of  Heat.  "     With  93  illustrations. 

"The  treatise  aims  to  give  a  simple  account  of  heat  phenomena  and  is  of  interest  to  rather 
advanced  young  students  of  science.  The  cheap  price,  one  dollar  per  volu  ne,  will  enable 
studious  young  folks  10  add   to  their  home  library  shelves  these  solidly  attractive  books." — 

Philadelphia  Ledger. 

Wonders  of  the  Heavens.     By  Camille  Fl\mmariom.     Translated  from 
the  French  by  Mrs.  Noimon  Lockyer.     With  48  illustrations. 
"It  is  an  inter  sting,  popular,  yet  authoritative  presentation  of  the  wonders  of  the  heavens." 

Christian  Register. 

Wonders  of  Optics.  By  F.  Mario.\.  Trm>latedand  edited  by  Charles 
M.  Quin,  F.C  S.  With  71  illustrations  and  a  colored  frontispiece. 
''The  author  h  is  an  official  po  ition  in  Paris,  and  shows  his  capability  as  a  popular  writer 
in  the  volume  before  us.  An  original  chipter  on  the  '  Spectroscope' has  been  added.  The 
book  abounds  not  only  in  facts,  but  illustrative  anecdotes,  many  of  curious  interest.  Some 
seventy-five  illustrations  add  to  the  value  and  interest  of  the  book." — Christian  Register. 

The  Sun.     By  Amedee  Guillemin.     Translated  from  the  French  by  T.   L. 

Phipsov.  I'h.D.      With  58  illustrations. 

"It  IS  a  popular  account  ot  the  '  life  of  the  earth,'  and  a  very  interesting  one  too." — Brook- 
lyn Union.  S 

Wonders  of  ^Acoustics ;  or,    The  Phenomena  of  Sound.    By  R. 

Radau.     With  an  additional  chapter  on  the  reproduction  and  transmission 
of  articulate  speech.     Withi  10  illustrations. 

"Tilt-re  are  few  more  enjoyable  or  more  instructive  books  in  any  language.  The  subject 
is  looked  at  from  almost  every  imaginable  point  of  view." — N.  Y.  Star. 

Wanders  of  Water.     Translated  from  the  French  of  Gaston  Tissandier. 

Edited,  with  additions,  by  Scheie  De  Veke,  of  the  University  of  Virginia, 

Illustrated  with  64  engravings  and  charts. 

"Everything  connected  with  the  subject  is  set  forth  in  a  clear  and  simple  but  comprehen- 
sive style,  embracing  the  physical  and  chemical  properties  of  water  ;  its  uses,  the  system  of  cir- 
culation, the  action  of  water  on  <:ontinents,  etc.  Like  all  the  volumes  in  this  series,  it  is  a  perfec  t 
compendium  of  inforraation  in  reference  to  the  subject  on  which  it  treats.  '—Christian  at  IFork. 

Wonders  of  the  Moon.  Translated  from  the  French  of  Amedee  Guille- 
.viiM  by  Misi  M.  G.  Mead.  Edited,  with  additions,  by  Maria  Mitchel, 
Vassar  College.     With  43  illustrationb. 

Meteors,  Aerolites,  Storms,  and  ^Atmospheric  Phenomena.    From 

the   I'  rench  of  Zurcher  and   Margolle,  by  Wm.  Lackland.     Wi  h  23 
illustra^^ions  by  Lebreton. 


fLLUSTRATED  LIBRARY  OF  WONDERS 

Fkom  the  N.  Y,  Journal  of  Commerce. 
'^Suth  a  'ibra^'y^  brim /u  II  rf  pictures^  is  a  joy  to  the  household,  besides 
being  a  means  o/ solid  instruction y 


The  WONDERS  of  ART  and  ARCH/EOLOGY. 

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Egypt  3,300  Years  Ago;  or,  Rameses  the  Great,   ByF.  DeLait- 

OYE.      With  40  illustrations. 

"In  this  small  h  mdsome  book  of  less  than  300  pages,  one  finds  compressed  a  very  large 
amount  of  information  upon  one  of  the  most  interesting  subjects  now  inviting  attention."— C>%/- 
cago  Standard. 

Wonders    of   Sculpture.      By  Louis  Viardot.      with   chapter  on  Amer- 
ican Sculpture  by  Clarence  Cook.     With  62  illustrations. 

"An  excellent  portable  hand-book  of  the  different  schools  of  art,  with  short  notices  of  lead- 
ing artists." — Zion^ s  Herald. 

Wonders  of  Glass  Making  in  All  Ages.    By  a.  Suazay.    with  63 

illustrations. 

"Apart  from  the  intrinsic  interest  of  the  book  as  a  pleasant  history  of  an  art  to  which  the 
world  owes  so  much  that  is  useful  and  beautiful,  the  reader  may  gather  from  it  a  large  amount  of 
technical  knowledge  which  will  be  of  service  to  him  in  judging  of  glassware  as  a  purchaser." — 

Journal  0/  Commerce. 

Wonders  of  European  Art.       Translated  from   the   French   of    Louis 
Viardot.     With  11  illustrations. 

''A  short  summary  of  the  achievements  of  the  Spanish,  German,  Flemish,  Dutch  and 
French  schools  of  painting.  It  is  written  primarily  for  the  benefit  of  readers  who  have  access  to 
the  Louvre,  but  its  terse  condensations  suit  it  to  the  needs  of  those  who  desire  a  compact  and 
rudimentary  general  survey  of  European  painting." — N.   Y.  Cotnmercial  Adi'ertiser. 

Wonders  of  Pompeii.     By  Marc  Monnier.     with  32  illustrations. 

"M.  Monnier  does  not  vaunt  his  eruduion,  though  he  may  be  an  archaeologist  of  the  most 
distinguished  merit :  what  he  aims  tod)  is  to  describe  an  old  city  buried  in  A.  D.  79,  and  to 
present  us  with  cle.ir  idets  of  what  Pompeii  was  like  when  it  was  a  live  and  bustling  place,  and 
contrast  those  past  conditions  wuh  those  of  to-day." — N.    Y.  Times. 

Wonders  of  ^Architecture.      By  m.   Lefkvre.     with  a  chapter  on 

English  Architecture  by  R.  Donald.     With  60  illustrations. 

"In  this  volume  w  e  have  a  good  -ccount  of  former  works  in  Architecture  in  different  coun- 
tries and  ages,  and  there  nre  sixty  iliu-tr  itions,  including  views  of  I  uildings,  of  which  no  one  ever 
iires.''' — Philadelphia  Ez'ening  Bulletin. 

The  Wonders  of  Italian  Art.    By  Louis  Vi  vrdot.    with  2s  illustrations. 

"His  criticism  and  description  arc  of  a  sort  calculated  lo  inform  the  average  stude.it  of  the 
subject,  and  the  book  contains  several  good  illustrations  of  famous  pictures." — Philadelphia 
American. 

The    Wonders  of  Engraving.     By  Georges  Dui-lf.ssis.     With  34  illus- 
trations. 


CHA%LES  SCTilBNER'S  SONS,  Piiblisbers, 

155-157   FIFTH   AVENUE,  NEW  YORK. 


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